Picture Trends of Black and White
by hikomokushi
Summary: Shizune froze. “What?” The blonde woman held her hands out in front of her, trying to work things through her fingertips that she couldn’t with her mind. “What would you do to get Sakura back?” [KakaSaku]
1. I

**Title:** Picture Trends of Black and White  
**Author:** Hiko Mokushi  
**Pairing:**KakashixSakura  
**Rating:** R  
**Warnings:** Language, adult themes/sexuality, implied rape/sexual abuse, torture, human trafficking, and character death.  
**Disclaimer:** Do not own at all.  
**Summary:** Shizune froze. "What?" The blonde woman held her hands out in front of her, trying to work things through her fingertips that she couldn't with her mind. "What would you do to get Sakura back?"

* * *

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**I. Living Rights**

"Tsunade-sama."

The blonde glanced up at the young black-haired woman, glad to have a reason to finally tear her eyes away from the idiocy that was her large stack of paperwork. Her amber eyes were narrowed boredly as lifted her arm, resting her chin in the palm of her upturned hand. She blew at a stray piece of hair that fell in front of her face. "Yes, Shizune?"

"We have a message for you." The medic-nin's tone was clipped and slightly distant, almost confusingly so. She walked towards the desk with a halt in her step; and while normally graceful as a cat, her feet scuffled slightly against the floor.

Tsunade blinked as a scroll was held out to her, eyes first widening and then narrowing sharply as she reached out to take it, recognizing the seal of the Kazekage. She held it as though it would erupt into flames, hands extended away from her body defensively. "We haven't received messages from the Land of Wind since Gaara became the new Kazekage," she muttered to herself as her fingers curled over the cool material. She opened it slowly, hesitantly, almost unsure of herself.

Shizune stood silently, politely, a small distance away; close enough to be of use quickly if she was needed and far enough away so that she couldn't read what the scroll contained. She couldn't help but feel a bit curiously, though.

The blonde-haired woman's eyes flickered back and forth, scanning the page with furious accuracy Shizune found it hard to tell where her white eye ended and the brown iris began. Her lips moved, reading the written words.

The entire time, the Hokage was quiet.

Slowly, the woman rolled the scroll back up, setting it down in front of her. Her hands folded in her lap for a moment as she thought. Then Tsunade leaned back and opened one of the many drawers in her desk; she pulled out a piece of parchment and a pen, meticulously writing. Her handwriting was almost perfect; strong, bold strokes that still carried a bit of femininity without any of the hesitancy only a skilled kunoichi like Shizune could see. Not many others could have noticed the very faint way the Hokage's fingers twitched instead of shaking.

Tsunade rolled the scroll up, pressing a stamp of the Konoha seal onto the end and sealing it. She held it out to Shizune, her brown eyes serious.

"Have Enkai send this immediately to the Kazekage," she instructed, voice soft. "Then come straight back here."

Eyes narrowed suspiciously, Shizune nodded, taking the scroll from her senior's hands and removed herself quietly from the room. Once outside, she spotted the young Jounin runner and held the scroll out before him importantly. _Don't look at it, don't lose it;_ Shizune repeated the rules to the brown-haired man who she had come to grow close to. He watched her boredly—he heard it from her every single time she had something else for him to deliver.

Once finished with her task, she showed herself back into the Hokage office, shutting the door behind her. Her eyes trailed to Tsunade, who still had not moved from the position she had taken before the woman had left the room—arms crossed stiffly under her breasts, hands clenched, eyes narrowed, staring at the desk before her as though it were a puzzle. "You still wish to speak to me, Tsunade-sama?" she asked quietly, unsure if she should interrupt.

The woman jolted, as though she'd completely forgotten she'd instructed Shizune to come back in. Tsunade sighed, uncrossing her arms and getting up from her comfy chair. She paced for a moment before spinning.

"I need you to have someone send for Naruto—and Kakashi," she added, "come to think of it, he'll want to know too; he's been as involved as anyone. The two of them deserve to know, first and foremost. I don't want them hearing through the grapevine and doing something stupid."

Shizune nodded. "If it's not too bold, Tsunade-sama," she asked, her dark eyes worried. "What was in the message?"

Tsunade glanced at her for a moment, questioning if she should be divulging such classified information. Then she shook her head, as though she had been waterlogged, and her eyes cleared with the innate knowledge that this was _Shizune_, her friend, her student; compatriot, comrade and closest confidant. She could tell her anything. "The Kazekage has gotten word of a group of insurgents that have taken residence within some of the cave-dunes just outside Suna."

"It's not normal for a village, especially one as powerful as Suna, to tell other villages of its problems. Does he need help? Or wish it?" She touched a finger curiously to her chin.

"No," Tsunade corrected, her lips pressed into a thin line. "He is giving us a chance to attack them first in retribution."

Shizune's brow furrowed as she leaned casually against the desk, forgetting her place when Tsunade was being so friendly. They weren't supposed to act like they were truly this close during working hours—it seemed to make people think Tsunade favored her. "Retribution?"

"The insurgents have apparently been in hiding for a long time; their holdout is deep within the caves, structured with a mix of metal and that strong plaster substance the people of Suna use to make their homes." The blonde shook her head, scratching at the back of her neck awkwardly. "From what the Kazekage's spies have been able to ascertain, it's well-built and heavily guarded."

"What is their objective?" the younger medic-nin asked, biting her lip. "They sound like they're prepared for a siege."

Tsunade's eyes darkened. "That is the _most_ disturbing point. Apparently, they have large _cages_ in the back."

"Cages?"

"Filled with young women."

The sharp intake of breath alerted the Hokage to her friend's instant hatred, and felt that common bond they'd always had growing larger, as she too had felt the instantaneous anger flare within her when she'd read the statement. "Normally," Tsunade carried on, her voice just as irritated, "the Sand-nins would have no trouble exterminating such vile offenders. But. . ." she trailed off.

Shizune raised an eyebrow, her shock and abhorrence stilling for a moment as she felt curiosity grow. "But?"

"One of the ninjas spotted something that might be of use to our village."

The black-haired woman could only imagine what could be of use to their village specifically that wasn't of use to any other village. While the ninja communities normally liked to try and keep peace, they weren't for giving away secrets. "Of use to _our_ village?" she recited, lifting a delicate finger to her lips as her eyes rolled toward the ceiling. "And _not_ of use to the Sand village? That's not something that happens often. Does it have something to do with water?" she joked weakly.

Tsunade gave an unenthusiastic smirk, but her heart wasn't really in it. She couldn't get her hopes up that easily.

"Hypothetically," she began, sitting on the edge of her desk and folding her hands to keep them busy. "What would you do. . . or really, how far would you be willing to go. . . to bring Sakura back to life?"

Shizune froze.

"What?" she asked softly, folded arms slowly coming down to hang at her sides. "What did you say?" Proper etiquette hardly seemed to matter at the moment.

The blonde woman held her hands out in front of her, trying to work things through her fingertips that she couldn't with her mind. "What would you do to get Sakura back?"

"Anything," Shizune replied immediately. "I would do anything I could."

"Gaara claims that his spy spotted a young woman, approximately twenty-some years of age. A young woman with vibrant pink hair."

Shizune's mouth dropped.

* * *

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**

Cold water splashed her face.

Haruno Sakura shot up from the thin mattress on the floor that comprised her bed.

She grunted angrily. Not only was she now wet, but her bed and linins were soaked as well. She tossed the wet sheet from her body, moving fluidly as she laid it out along the floor—the quicker for it to try. The bed would have to dry without help, she'd hope in time for her to sleep on; she didn't fancy sleeping on the floor. It would have been nicer if she could have had something to hang her sheet on, but unfortunately, they provided her with nothing more than the essentials she needed. They couldn't risk giving her anything that she could—with her skill—morph into a weapon.

"Mitsuharu, get up. No fast movements; you don't want to get put to sleep again, do you?"

Green eyes flashing, she raised slowly, her hands dead weights at her side.

The wall to her left slowly dissolved into a pale gray and black-flecked sand, leaving behind high, thinly-spaced steel bars. Slowly, she walked towards the one part of her room—_her cell­_—that was open to the outside world. She lifted her hands slowly, pressing her forearms against the cool metal. Her forehead followed, attempting to cool the anger that raged through her form. She leaned heavily, body pressed forward; she loved goading him, _willing_ him to try something.

"What'd you do this time, Gomimaru?" her voice hissed.

It was a cacophonous sound to her ears.

She had no use to talk to herself, or the steel walls that made up her prison. The few times they had let her out she was instructed not to talk to the girls—they did _not_ want her forming any sort of bond with the young ones. The few times she had the chance to say anything to _anybody_ was when somebody came to get her. Even the food—if what they served her could even be called food—was passed through with jutsus.

She had to satisfy her anger with taking it out on her own personal little guard.

The man was not a large one, but he was certainly strange.

He was an incredibly dark man, in more than just his personality. His eyes were almost black, and when she'd first seen him, those eyes had reminded her so much of Sasuke, it had been frightening. Now she could tell the difference. His skin was a dim, olive-tan. His nose had been flattened, as though it had been broken repeatedly and never given the chance to heal. His eyes were wide-spaced, his fore-head even larger than hers, and his black hair hung lankily around his shoulders. His lazy looks would have reminded her of Shikamaru had not he always had a grin on his face.

It was his grin that had scared her the most.

But now, when he walked out of the shadows that surrounded her little cage, she found herself mirroring his grin. She would be hard set not to admit his callousness hadn't rubbed off on her. "Play a little too rough?" she sneered tauntingly, batting her eyelashes at him. Her hoarse voice had taken on such an antagonist tone she could hardly recognize it as hers. "Maybe one of the girls actually told you how unattractive you were? Joushi wouldn't enjoy you breaking the merchandise. Better keep you out of the slaughterhouse."

A glowing blue rod appeared from nowhere, and she leapt backwards, her hands curled into fists and she held them up in front of her defensively. It was merely a reaction—she couldn't have done the man any harm even if she'd not wanted to.

"You know, Mitsuharu, you're one vindictive bitch," he mocked, laughing at her face. He held the rod up and trailed it lightly along the metal bars in front of her. They reacted immediately, crackling with electricity, sparking blue and yellow. She had learned quickly enough, he thought with regret. What he wouldn't give for the tiny kunoichi to forget his favorite toy and continue to lean up against the bars.

They were the perfect conduit for pain.

"Learned from the best, didn't I?"

He didn't know if she was referring to himself or whoever had trained her.

Sakura concealed a knowing smirk, remembering with painful clarity the powerful woman—the Hokage—that she had learned most of her prowess from. Not that Kakashi hadn't been helpful; he'd provided the basis for her knowledge. But the man was far more suited to training boys than young girls.

As much as she told herself she couldn't hold it against him, she couldn't help the bitter rise it caused in her stomach.

She would've _pounded_ the man's flat face to _mush_ if she'd had access chakra.

Gomimaru merely scowled. "Glad that I can rid of you such a nasty habit."

Sakura glanced up. The guard disarmed his taser one with hand, shoving it back into its holster on his thigh, and sliding his bandana over his eyes. He lifted his fist up, a smirk dancing across his face. A bright white light went off as he tossed a small, circular object between the metal bars of her cage. For a second, everything was white and she almost wondered if this was what dying felt like. Then the pain came.

It felt like her retinas were burning out of her eyes.

Tears streamed uncontrollably down her face of their own volition, her eyes rolling back into her head painfully. Her hands slid slickly against her face, up into her hair, where she clawed at her scalp. She bit her lip and felt her teeth slip through the thin layer of flesh before she felt the pain of it.

"Kneel, whore."

His voice was all around her, and while her heart rebelled, her body did not. She scrambled to her knees, hands still clutching her skull. Her vision was steadily coming back to her, eyes clouded with black spots.

"Flash bombs _are_ a crude tool," Gomimaru purred, his exotic voice thick with an exaggerated accent he didn't normally have. "But I find that they're _incredibly_ effective."

Her eyes watering, she inclined her head and found herself kneeling directly in front of him, staring up his chest. She hadn't even heard the metal door open. The insurgent raised his arms, interlacing his fingers together in a fist, and bringing it in a shattering blow against the side of her head.

Sakura fell to the ground—unable to defend herself—only able to take the punishment for her attitude. Her head smacked sharply against the ground, jarring her hard enough to rattle her jaw. Something trickled down the back of her throat and she knew she was swallowing her own blood. The earth swayed around her.

"Enough, Gomimaru," a deeper voice murmured, father away. Sakura coughed, back arching off the ground as if in response to merely the sound of his voice. "She needs to be coherent enough to perform her task properly. She can't do that if she's not conscious."

Footsteps echoed in the steel cage she was kept in.

Her fight or flight instinct crept into her slowly, and she once again found herself wishing that she could run for her life. Or break their skulls in, whichever she could manage. As the young woman took a gasping, raspy breath, she reminded herself it wasn't a cage—it was a killing box.

She lived inside her own coffin.

The footsteps stopped at her side. "Now, Rin." —her stomach churned at the name, and she wished she'd had a better thought to not use the name written on the memorial stone— "we can do this the easy way. Or we can do this the hard way. The easy way is, of course, very much more pleasant than the hard way. The hard way tends to include some pain. And, well, Kaoru-chan probably doesn't _need_ that arm. So what do you say? Care to help us out?"

His hand caressed her cheek and she flinched away from it. "Get bent, Joushi," she sneered, rolling onto her side.

_I'm so utterly_ weak. _I'm sorry, Tsunade-shishou. . . that I couldn't be stronger for you._

Sakura pushed herself up onto her hands and knees, attempting to regain some of the strength she'd lost. Her eyesight had returned, though her eyes burned like she had an eyelash stuck in them. That, however, compared little to the throb in her skull—she was almost sure something had fractured. Hacking another couch, she spat blood on the floor, wiping at her mouth with the back of her hand.

"Is that a yes, Rin-chan?"

Her head turned and she looked the monster in the face.

His blue eyes reminded her too much of Naruto, but without the blond air and whiskers, she'd never confuse them, even in her deepest hallucinations.

Joushi was taller than her, taller than Gomi, but incredibly skinny. He looked as though he'd offended someone important and they'd put him in a human stretcher. His short, ginger hair could have almost looked comical if he hadn't cropped it so that it fell directly into his eyes. A scar curled around the outside of his right eye.

"What happened?"

She hated herself for what she had to do.

Joushi smiled, something that seemed incredibly normal on his face—but Sakura grimaced, attempting to sit back on her heels. His smiles were twisted; they curved too far in the corners, giving him a fox-like smirk that promised grisly tidings. His canines protruded slightly over his thin lips, giving him the look of having fangs. Her head ached, and she found she couldn't hold herself up, her center of balance lost.

She settled with folding her legs beneath her. "Kaoru was a bit _too_ feisty with one of our well-paying clients and seems to have gotten her arm broken in the process." He answered her question with a causality that made her sick.

Sakura let out a bark of hoarse, humorless laugh. It sounded disturbed, even to her. "Lemme guess, you want me to heal her up so you can push her out into some other asshole's arms who'll have her broken again in a week?"

He smiled a gentleman's smile and crossed his arms leisurely across his chest. "If that is what the client wishes."

"You people make me sick."

"Ah, but Rin-chan," he drawled, striding towards her.

His hand trailed along her shoulder blades before sliding up the back of her head. His fingers tangled almost tenderly in her hair before his fingers tightened their grip and he yanked back on her head with enough force to pull her to the ground. She hit the ground with excruciating accuracy, landing directly on her elbows and sending those familiar black clouds back into her vision. His hand tightened on her hair, pulling from the roots. The woman could feel some of them give way. Sakura attempted to keep her mouth shut, refusing to let out even so much as a whimper. He whispered lazily, "You're the one that keeps us in business."

This was one of those moments that she hated herself again. She coughed, trying to regain air into her lungs.

Tears—whether from the pain or from her own actions—clung on her lashes.

Releasing her hair, and letting her back fall against the cold ground, he tugged a handkerchief from the pocket of his pants, wiping at the hand that had held her as though she were a dirty urchin. Joushi cast a look at Gomimaru, nodding slightly. "Bring her 'round, when you get them on," he instructed, dropping the cloth onto the ground as he left her prison. "Kaoru is one of our best girls—we need her up and running as soon as we could manage."

Gomimaru's eyebrow deepened further into a scowl as he gave a curt nod, pulling out a long, thin key.

"C'mon, Mitsuharu." He grinned as he spoke, leaning down onto one knee in front of her, arms resting casually over his crooked joint. He waggled the key before her face like he was the master, baiting his dog with a piece of meat. She glanced over at him, seeing through her shocking hair.

In that second he faltered, his facing losing its mirth.

"I'll kill you some day," Sakura whispered, closing her eyes as she offered her hands, leather bonds prominent against her pale skin. "I can promise you that. I'll kill all of you some day."

His hand twitched against his nightstick, before he grasped her chin and jerked her sharply.

"I've heard stories," he whispered, key finding its way into the hidden lock inside the shackle on her wrist. It loosened slightly, and he repeated the process to her other wrist. His hand dropped to the ones at her feet; and when he twisted, the leather tightened enough to cause her to hiss. "I'm not sure if I believe it or not."

She spat in his face. He wiped it away with the handkerchief Joushi had dropped. An ironic smile twisted her features.

"_Believe it._"

He tugged her to her feet, pushing her towards the bars. "Whatever, Mitsuharu. It's time to earn your right to live."

* * *

**  
**

"But Baa-san," the young man gaped, his blue eyes wide, unsure. He seemed frozen to the spot, unable to move. "You. . . you can't be serious! Tell me this is some big joke!"

The woman wanted to embrace him, comfort him, and seriously considered it. Tsunade blinked, however, and refrained from embracing him; merely staring at the orange and black-clad Jounin standing before her instead. "I would have thought that you of all people, Naruto, would be happy with the possibility of Sakura being alive. I didn't know you were so anxious to be rid of your ex-teammate."

Naruto glowered. He crossed his arms angrily, and for a moment, Tsunade was reminded of the Kyuubi that resided deep within the gentleman. "Don't be stupid, Baa-san," he snapped. Tsunade raised an eyebrow ominously at his tone. "I would be ecstatic for Sakura to be alive—if she were. Haven't I always said we'll find her? Isn't that why I dropped the ANBU test the first time around? I'd rather Sakura be dead than a prisoner in a. . . a. . . a _cat house_!"

"It's more than that, Naruto."

He stamped his foot immaturely. The Hokage almost smiled—that was more the Naruto she knew.

Tsunade crossed her arms, patience thinning. When she spoke, it was cautious—she was walking a thin line on what she could and couldn't say with these two. One wrong word and she'd end up sending them both over the edge—rushing off to God knew where in search of the young woman. "It's more than forced prostitution; this is along the lines of human trafficking. It's practically _slave_ labor. Not to mention the whore bit." The blonde woman sighed, glancing towards the other man in the room. "What do you say, Kakashi? Hm?"

For the first time since he'd walked into the room, Hatake Kakashi looked at Tsunade. If she'd been a weaker woman she might have even flinched backwards. His gaze was fiery—she could almost _feel_ the fire of his anger.

The masked man's eyes narrowed, the one not covered visibly clouded. "Where?" His voice was hoarse, his stance tense.

"You can't go rushing off into this, Kakashi!" Tsunade yelled, picking up a paperweight from her desk, testing the feel of it in her hand. If she held at just the right angle—and she got lucky that he didn't dodge—she could probably manage to break that perfect nose of his. "Let's discuss this first; we don't even know."

"Pink hair, you said." Kakashi ignored the threat of projectile objects, pacing forwards confidently towards her desk. "How many_ pink-haired_ women of twenty-some years can heal with their chakra? How many of_ those_ women can put their fist through a man's skull?"

His gray eye was desperate, almost pleading. That mothering tendency was erupting within her again. First she wanted to hold Naruto, shield and protect him from the pain this new information caused. Now she wanted to comfort Kakashi? She squashed the urges, favoring an image of her smashing his skull into the wall—it soothed the beast that growled inside her.

"It has to be her."

Naruto nodded his head furiously, hitai-ate bouncing loosely against his forehead. He bit his lip angrily, hands in fists, folded against his chest.

"We need to make sure, Kakashi," Tsunade reiterated, attempted to calm herself down. His insolence was enough to make her forgo throwing the weight and just use it to forcibly bash his skull in. "If we do anything, involve ourselves at all, involve _Konoha_, and it's not her—"

Naruto growled, "Kakashi-sensei's right, it _has_ to be her!" His nails bit into his hand, hard enough to draw blood.

Kakashi clenched a gloved fist in front of his face, eye scrunched shut. "She's my ex-student, Tsunade-sama," he whispered, anger almost palpable in his tone. "My only female student. I was supposed to protect her. I failed; and now she's been in that _hell-hole_ and we never even goddamn knew! After all this time the least we can do for her is kill the bastards that did this to her."

"We have to go get her, Baa-san," Naruto echoed, a pleading tone to his voice that didn't suit a twenty-five year old ninja. He looked so young.

Tsunade sighed.

Reaching into her desk with one hand—her other still clutched the silver paperweight—she produced a scroll from one of the drawers and tossed it to Naruto.

The same hand maneuvered three large scrolls, tied together with string, onto her desk, hidden behind her, in the seconds that Naruto was distracted by catching the flying object. "Kakashi," she said finally, without glancing at the shinobi, "stay. You'll be team leader. Naruto, I suggest you tell Ino and Sasuke; I suspect they'd like to know as well."

The young man nodded, but his eyes darkened marginally, as he pocketed the scroll. He excused himself from the room, slamming the door shut behind him.

"Kakashi."

He pointedly ignored her.

"Kakashi, Sakura was a young, _Jounin_ kunoichi. She was trained by the best—I'm not just patting myself on the back, here, you're as credible as I am. It is not your fault. You need to stop _blaming_ yourself for her mistake."

"I was her sensei—"

"As was I!" interrupted Tsunade, reminding him again; the soft, comforting tone had been replaced with an irritated edge. She was reminded of one of the reasons why she'd never had children. "It was a series of regrettable, unfortunate, _unforeseen_ mistakes. Nobody caused this to happen."

Kakashi stared at her seriously. "Nobody may have caused it, but I didn't prevent it."

Tsunade stared back at him, and then shook her head, chuckling softly to herself. "Take this," she instructed, unclenched hand grabbing the pack of scrolls and waving them before her impatiently. "Naruto has the abridged version in his. I recommend he not see _this_ one." Kakashi walked forward and took the bundle without looking at her, his eyes fixed on the tiles of the Hokage tower.

"You really do care for her, don't you?"

Tsunade's voice had grown soft again, and she smiled crookedly at him—it would have been condescending if it weren't so cute.

"She was my student," Kakashi muttered, walking backwards away from the desk. He had never felt too safe standing close to the Godaime when she had sharp—and blunt—objects readily in reach nearby.

"Don't lie to me, Kakashi." She smirked as she replied. "I'm better at it than you are." Her face grew serious again, her arms crossing, and the Copy-nin marveled at the suddenness of the mood swings in her personality. She clutched the paperweight tighter; something gave way with a snap. "If this _is_ Sakura, and she _is_ alive. . . you have to tell her."

Kakashi glanced at her, visible eye downcast.

"To what end? Everything will be different if—_when_—she comes back. She doesn't need her ex-sensei confessing his undying love for her as well."

"Think of all that will have changed," Tsunade implored, a slight menace to her tone. She purposefully held her hand over her desk and released what was left of the mangled paperweight. The silver stone had caved in, crumbling into three large sections, with several other smaller pieces—some of it had even been reduced to a fine, silky powder. She rubbed her fingers together, allowing the little fragments that remained on her hand to fall on top of the broken heap. "Her name is written on the Memorial Stone. She will need help."

If Kakashi had said he didn't feel just a little bit intimidated, he would have been lying through his teeth. "And I'm the one to give it to her?" He laughed without feeling.

"Who better than the person who loves her most in the world?" Tsunade smirked, leaning back on the desk. Her fingers played with the hem of her shirt. "You're excused. Make me a list of those who'll go with the two of you. I imagine three, besides you and Naruto of course, should do it. Shikamaru and Kankuro—I believe even Gaara-sama himself—plan on joining you, so you'll be well-prepared."

The blonde's amber eyes glowed with anger. If Sakura is there, you return either with her, or injured enough that my beating you to a pulp will jeopardize your life."

Kakashi gave a stiff bow before disappearing in a puff of smoke, a sour expression on his masked face. Tsunade sighed and brushed lingering stone fragments from her legs. "He'll never learn."

Approximately two miles from the Hokage tower, Hatake Kakashi leaned in front of the black stone he'd spent so much of his life before, his hand reaching forward. He hesitated a minute longer, merely staring with his visible eye, before extending his curved fingers. The pad of his index finger rolled over the carved name. He traced the pattern engraved into the obsidian, mouthing the words his fingers gracefully rewrote.

Sakura Haruno had been missing for five years.

* * *

TBC . . .

* * *

**  
**

Well, this is the _Picture Trends_ I've been talking about. I'm very pleased with it. It's probably one of my more inventive pieces, as well as one of my darker pieces.

Originally, It was only going to be three chapters—a three-shot, if you will. But I just couldn't stop writing. After sitting down with Alaina, my wuverly beta who was so incredibly supportive of me throughout this entire process of getting just this first chapter done (considering the fact that she hates the fact that I keep Sakura's hair short), we figured out the best places to cut it down.

I haven't even finished writing what I had planned to be the entire first chapter, but I know that I get rather annoyed with excessively long chapters. If I'd kept on, this entire first chapter would have ended up being somewhere around 15,000 words to 20,000 words. I'm going to attempt to keep each chapter between 5,000 and 7,000 words—so it makes it easier to read. If this means having more chapters, I'll sacrifice that.

I'm not sure how _many_ chapters are going to be in this thing, but I know at the moment, for what I have planned to write, at least eight. I may aim for somewhere around ten and make it a nice, well-rounded and finished piece. I'd love reviews, just to see what people think. I've got my select few people that review every single chapter of _25 Moments_, so it's these people I'm really excited to hear from. I really haven't written anything as dark as this for KakaSaku yet; I want to see how you guys react.

Thanks for listening to my long-winded speech.

- Hiko Mokushi


	2. II

**Title:** Picture Trends of Black and White  
**Author:** Hiko Mokushi  
**Pairing:**KakashixSakura  
**Rating:** R  
**Warnings:** Language, adult themes/sexuality, implied rape/sexual abuse, torture, human trafficking, and character death.  
**Disclaimer:** Do not own at all.  
**Summary:** Shizune froze. "What?" The blonde woman held her hands out in front of her, trying to work things through her fingertips that she couldn't with her mind. "What would you do to get Sakura back?"

* * *

**  
**

**II. Backlash**

Sakura rubbed at her chaffed wrists, glad that the bonds' levels were lessened enough so that they no longer pressed as painfully against her skin.

Unfortunately, she was still very much a prisoner.

The bonds around her wrists were loosened so that she could summon enough chakra to heal—but not enough so that she could perform any of the strength techniques Tsunade had taught her. The bonds on her legs, however, had been tightened to the point of cutting off her circulation; making it difficult to move, as well as painful. A finger scratched at her neck, under the rough collar that nestled just above the hollow of her throat. The tough, black leather rubbed painfully against her skin. There were times when she'd scratched at it and pulled her hand away, covered in her own skin.

The young kunoichi glowered over her shoulder as Gomimaru finished unlocking the vault. The stone wall fell away as sand, betraying the steel bars the seemingly innocent wall had hidden. The young woman stared past the cage's door, and felt the tell-tale burning behind her eyes of oncoming tears. There were about fifteen girls in the room before her.

"Rin-chan!"

A voice called out to her—five years of being called by another name had given her help in reacting quickly. She turned her head, staring at a young woman with cropped blonde hair. Her heart wretched and she clutched at her side.

"Kari-chan," she whispered, rushing through the now-open bars. Gomi slammed them shut behind her.

"You've got three hours. Then it's back to your cage, bitch."

Sakura didn't even bother glancing in his direction; he wasn't worth the time or effort. She wrapped her arms around the young woman, clutching at her as though her life depended on it—in reality it was only her sanity. "Are you okay, Kari-chan?" she asked, hand rubbing a slow, soothing pattern on the woman's back.

Kari smiled, pulling back slowly. "Yes, fairly good," she replied coolly, reaching her hand out to take Sakura's. "Well, as good as good can be in this place."

Months had passed since they had seen each other. The girl before her was only inches shorter, with a tanned, heart-shaped face and wide oval brown eyes. She'd once kept her platinum hair flowing down her back in a long pony-tail, reminding Sakura depressingly of her own best friend. If there had been one person in the entire hell they were in that understood what she was going through, it was Kari. The young girl may not have been a fellow kunoichi, but she was from the Village of Stone, and had been friends with plenty of them.

"Kaoru-chan's not doing too good."

Sakura gripped the woman's hand harder. "Kaoru," she murmured, scanning the surrounding, frightened faces. She understood; normally people didn't visit unless they were specifically searching for a girl to fill the position they had. "I don't recognize the name." There were few faces she could remember—a girl with long black hair, another with honey-brown, and an older lady, who always found some new way to keep her head shaved.

"She's new."

There was one face she didn't see. "What happened to Ami?"

Kari made a face. "Slit her wrist after she knocked her client out, from what we heard from the guards. I don't know how she'd have managed though, she never seemed very strong."

Sakura's heart fluttered painfully. "You think it's a lie?"

"Who knows?" The woman shrugged.

Kari led her over towards the mattress, pressed in lines against the back wall. Two young women sat on one, next to a tiny, supine form. As they neared, Sakura felt her stomach clench and bile rose in her throat.

Kaoru couldn't have been any more than fourteen years old. Her body was tiny, minute and oh so very _breakable_ looking. Her arms at their thickest were nearly as thin as Sakura's wrists. Her face was undamaged—it was a rule for Joushi's whores: don't damage the face and you can do whatever you want to the rest of them. Sakura could see the bruises that lined her lower legs; probably more. Her left arm was pinned against her side with a ripped piece of cloth. She looked so pale next to her dark, lank hair that if not for the rising and falling chest, she could pass for dead.

"Rin, this is Fujimaki Leiko and Gashimu Akani." Kari pointed first to a blonde girl with short, choppy hair that stopped just short of her shin, and then a girl with long, curly red hair. "Leiko, Akani, this is Mitsuharu Rin."

Gashimu Akani looked up and gave a half-hearted smile. "Thanks for the help." Her voice was strangely deep for her petite appearance. "We were traveling with Kaoru and her sister, Hana, before we got taken. We promised Hana we'd take care of her."

Sakura knelt down, leaning forward to peer at the sleeping girl. "What happened to her sister?"

"She's in the _vocal_ ward." Fujimaki Leiko's voice was calm, but contained a sort of growling emotion behind it Sakura recognized as a tone many ninja took with someone they fought. The blonde woman had a large, purple bruise blossoming across her pale cheekbone.

Sakura turned away.

"It looks like a clean break," Sakura murmured, running her hand along the girl's arm. "Should heal with minimal scarring."

Summoning what chakra she could, her hands glowed with a bright green light as she laid them flat. Her eyes closed in concentration. She visualized the break in the girl's humerus, near to the neck. She tried to recall the words Tsunade had used when instruction her how to heal properly, but found the older woman's voice was lost to her. With or without Tsunade's whispered directives, her body moved of its own accord. She'd always had an innate ability to heal. The girl's bones melded back together—the break had been clean; right along the surgical neck.

Sakura fingers brushed lightly against the girl's cheek, smiling tiredly. Her bonds made it so that she could only release so much chakra at a time, making healing longer and a much more exhausting process than normal.

"Tell her to take it easy," Sakura instructed. "The break is mended, but I don't have enough access to my chakra to reinforce it. If she starts jumping around and jarring it, she could cause it to snap again."

Leiko offered a smile, but it didn't reach her eyes. "Thanks again."

"Don't mention it," Sakura sighed and drug a hand through her bangs. "It's the least I could do."

"Sakura's healing abilities are amazing." Kari drew her feet up underneath her, hands drawing patterns on the floor. "It's how I first met her. Some asshole broke my nose. I'd never seen chakra-healing before—so I thought she was crazy holding her hand in front of my face. But sure enough, five minutes later, the pain was gone."

Akani seemed to enjoy Kari's rambling, but Leiko was fidgety and looked uncomfortable.

"Is that the healer-whore?"

The girl was tall and statuesque, with shoulder-length brown hair and cold hazel eyes. She had three scars that parted the skin across her face, but barely took away from her beauty. One ran along her jaw on the left side, the other hovered low over the bride of her right eye, breaking her eyebrow. The other cut a diagonal pattern from the corner of her left eye down to the right corner of her lip, across her nose.

Sakura turned, sighing. "If it isn't Botan. My, you look better each time I see you. New scar?"

The punch was thrown before she even turned, giving her no time to dodge. Sakura felt her jaw crack slightly as her head spun, white flashes of light going off in front of her eyes. She tasted her own blood for the second time that day. Her body flew back with the momentum; behind her, she could hear Kari and Akani gasp audibly. Leiko was on her feet and caught her before she even hit the ground.

The medic-nin let out a ragged breath, cackling; it was a hollow, discordant sound. She wiped at her mouth; bloody lip sore against her fingertips. "You still punch like a whiny bitc—"

The girl's hand was around her throat, the other slamming forcibly into the center of her stomach. Leiko flinched behind her as Sakura shuddered, coughing up blood. The blonde woman tightened her grip and made a move to drag her backwards—but Sakura hooked her heels around Botan's calves, holding herself in place. She grinned, her teeth smeared, crimson on white.

A bolt of fear went up Botan's spine. "Get off, Mitsuharu!" she exclaimed, trying to step back. "I'll—!"

As Leiko instinctively let go of her arms, Sakura threw her head forward, pulling herself upright with the momentum and successfully head butted her. "You'll do what?" she asked through gritted teeth, ignoring the pain blossoming in her skull. "Bleed on me?"

They fell backward, Sakura on top of Botan as they hit the ground.

"Rin, stop!" Kari screamed, but it was as if it echoed down a long tunnel, and Sakura could barely hear her for the roar of blood in her ears.

Botan recovered quickly; the hand still clenched around Sakura's neck tightened, enough that Sakura could feel her airway closing. Botan's mouth snapped around the closest part of the kunoichi: her arm. Blood spurted and Sakura let out a mangled scream as they rolled. Her head struck the ground, but there was enough force that Sakura was back on top. Black spots clouded her vision as her brain went haywire from lack of oxygen. Hands found their way into the brunette's hair and Sakura gripped hard, pulling up and then pushing down.

Botan's skull hit the concrete floor with a sickening crack of bone on stone.

She was pulling her hands back up for a second go when something poked her hard in the back.

Her body fell away from Botan's supine from, shuddering as the electricity coursed through her body, rendering her muscles useless and her brain inept. Her eyes closed and she bit clean through her lip. Her body spasmed; for a moment she almost felt her heart stop.

"That's it, Mitsuharu." Gomimaru's voice cut through her skull. "You're supposed to heal the girls, not kill them." He tugged at her leg, dragging her along the ground and out of the prison. She avoided Kari's pleading, sorrowful eyes. Disgust flourished within her.

Sakura's head bumped roughly against the ground as she was drug back to her prison. Hands tightened the bonds on her wrists again, until she almost hissed from the pressure.

"Guess they were right about you, Mitsuharu." Gomi's voice was drifting away. He seemed distant—not upset, but almost frightened. "You really are a killer."

His words hurt worse than Botan's punch to her gut. Her body felt heavy, like lead. She couldn't move. She didn't want to. Every part of her ached. Blood welled across her arm where Botan had bitten her; teeth marks pocketed her skin. She hurt; not just her body, but her heart. Tears streamed across her cheeks. Her soul cried with her.

The sand was already winding its way up around her cage when she ventured a look around her. It sufficiently walled her in, cutting her off from the rest of the world. Sakura lay in the center of her cage, and for the first time since she could remember, she curled slowly into a ball and cried out loudly. _You're a monster_, her mind screamed, and she screamed along silently with it. She'd almost killed a girl tonight. For no reason.

In those moments, her aching body cold against the stone floor, she realized she was no better than the rest of them.

* * *

**  
**

The Hokage tower was strangely chilly for some reason, even though it was only early October.

The room was dark, its occupants silent; a single kerosene lamp provided atmosphere and a more than a few shadows. Tsunade was perched lightly on the edge of her desk, a small ceramic bowl of sake clenched in her hand. Shizune stood beside her, silently offering the comfort she couldn't voice. Kakashi leaned lazily in the corner, orange book held before his face—his posture was tense; gray eye focused on a point over the top. Naruto paced the center of the room; Hinata watched, unable to calm his anxieties.

The previous Yamanaka Ino opened the door and blinked, her blue eyes widening with mild surprise. Light from the hall brightened the room, illuminating the shinobi inside. "I didn't know this was a party," she attempted to joke, but her voice was weak. Shizune offered a smile, but it didn't reach her eyes.

"This look like a party?" Naruto growled, fixing the blonde with an usually baleful glower.

"Dobe," Uchiha Sasuke muttered, shutting the door as he came in behind Genma. "Don't talk like that to her."

"Yeah, because she might get even more two-fac—"

"I_ dare_ you to finish that sentence." Sasuke stepped calmly in from of Naruto, his eyes shifting back and forth between normal and Sharingan. Tsunade tossed Kakashi a furtive look. He shook his head, once, before snapping his book shut loudly. Genma stiffened at his side.

"Sasuke,_ don't_!"

Ino tugged on the dark-haired young man's arm. He shook his head for a few seconds and his eyes faded fully from red back to black. With a final glare, he allowed her to lead him to the far side of the room, talking into his ear in hushed whispers. Naruto's blue eyes followed their path with unconcealed disgust.

"I hope we are not late!" a deep voice exclaimed from the door, light filling the room once again.

Tsunade rolled her eyes and took her sake down in one shot, smacking her lips together.

Kakashi cleared his throat, straightening his back. "No, Lee, you're just in time."

The green-clothed jounin walked past the two fuming young men, the dark-haired Kiba walking quietly into the room after him before shutting the door, removing light from the room once again. "Good. I was afraid we'd missed it." Like a mirror image of his former sensei, Lee strode across the room to stand next to Kakashi, the only difference being that the silver-haired man was taller. Kiba settled himself on the other side of Genma, Akamaru lying down faithfully at his feet.

Sasuke threw a glare over his shoulder towards Lee, before glancing at Tsunade. "So what is it? Why are we all here?" Ino rubbed her fingernails soothingly against his back.

Hinata, releasing Naruto's hands from between her own, glanced nervously at the fellow kunoichi. "C-c-congratulations, Ino," she whispered, avoiding meeting the blonde's gaze. Her eyes tripped downward.

Ino's mouth opened a fraction of an inch, fingers splaying over her stomach. "Thank you. . .?"

Naruto intentionally glanced away, turning his blue eyes to the Hokage, who was once again plying herself with more sake. "Can we just _go_?" he pleaded, voice hard, attempting to stem the emotion behind it. "Me, Kakashi-sensei, Genma, Kiba and Lee—we're all we need. You said we'd be meeting up with Shikamaru and Kankuro in Sand. We don't need more help!"

His eyes drifted to Sasuke.

"If you've got something to say, Naruto. . ."

Ino's grip on his wrist tightened. "Sasuke, _please_, stop it," she whispered.

Hinata rubbed Naruto's forearm comfortingly. He shrugged her off gently. "I'm sick of having to worry about _his_ feelings! What about Sakura-chan? What about _her_ feelings!'

Sasuke almost visibly paled.

"_What_?" Ino breathed, going stiff. "What nonsense are you talking about, Naruto? Sakura's—" Her voice caught. "Sakura's gone."

"She's alive." Kakashi's eyes were cold as he watched the proceedings, unable to remain silent. "We've word from the Kazekage. That is what this meeting is about, Sasuke. I'm leading the recovery mission."

Ino turned to stare, her blue eyes meeting Sasuke's black ones. Emotion akin to fear flickered over the girl's face.

"When?" asked Sasuke quietly, voice strained. "Where?"

"Sunakagure," Tsunade answered his question as she put down her sake, peering at him sidelong. She rested her chin in her upturned palm, her elbow on her knee. "Apparently, they had been having trouble with some rogue ninja in their southern caves. These ninja are prostituting young woman that they either buy or kidnap. They are held practically in prison, unable to even defend themselves. Now, while none of these ninja are of much importance, one did come up in our bingo books: A Mujihi Joushi, Missing-nin of twelve years, originally from the Village Hidden in the Clouds. He specialized in undercover work, a master infiltrator.They've been holed up in the caves for some time now; their lair is practically perfect."

A slow smile spread across her face. "_Almost_ perfect. The Kazekage has managed to slip in three shinobi in the past two and a half years. Two ninja, one kunoichi. The men weren't trusted near the women ordinarily; mostly they were bodyguards, escorting Mujihi and the woman to and from their _clients_." The word left a bad taste in her mouth. "The kunoichi was killed, reports say; nobody ever found out exactly what occurred, only the end result. And it took her counterparts nearly six months before they were able to find and decode her reports."

Hinata leaned against Naruto and stifled a sob. The ninja's fists were clenched; and he took deep breaths to calm himself as he wrapped his arms around her, cradling the woman against his chest. He whispered soothing words, staring at Tsunade over her shoulder. Genma and Kiba were exchanging looks, while Lee stared at the ground, horrified. Ino was crying, using Sasuke's shirt to wipe her eyes. Kakashi had folded his arms. His eyes were shut, face stoic.

Beneath his mask, he bit his lip until he drew blood.

"As soon as the Kazekage read the reports, he recognized his kunoichi's reference to a young woman used to heal the girls when injured by cliental; a young woman with green eyes and vivid pink hair." Tsunade's brown eyes were practically burning. "He sent word immediately. I replied, of course. Gaara-sama has relinquished complete control of the situation. He's even volunteered help. Shikamaru and Kankuro are going to meet you all when you arrive."

The Hokage turned and fixed her gaze on the Uchiha, though she spoke to the entire group.

"The question now is whether or not you wish to accompany Kakashi and Naruto on their task."

Genma grunted. "Bastards. Can we kill them?"

"We have permission to do whatever we need to do to fulfill the mission," purred Tsunade. "Technically this is ANBU territory; but anyone who is not ANBU who wishes to go will be given my expressed permission. You'll probably end up needing to turn Mujihi into the Suna black ops; they'll dispose of him properly after getting all the information from him they can. Anybody and everybody else is fair game."

The brown-haired ninja grinned and clicked his senbon enthusiastically between his teeth.

"Is that all?"

All eyes were redirected back to Sasuke, who gripped Ino's arm—though gently—as though his life depended on it. He seemed unstable on his own feet, and the woman's other hand was wrapped around his back. The young man wore the expression of supreme distaste, as though he'd had something bad held underneath his nose.

Tsunade tipped her head slightly to the side and glanced his way through her eyelashes. "Obviously, Ino is unable to assist, what with her_ condition_," she said the word delicately, brown eyes slipping towards the female. "But if you. . ."

"No." Sasuke snatched his arm back from Ino, giving a stiff bow. "Arigatou, Hokage-sama." He turned to Ino, who opened her mouth in protest. His eyes squashed whatever she'd wanted to say, and she closed her mouth sharply, teeth clicking together behind her slightly-parted lips. Ino turned, giving Hinata a small, silent wave as Sasuke placed his hand at the small of her back and led her towards the door. When the door shut behind their exiting shadows, the entire room almost audibly breathed a sigh of relief.

Naruto walked over and punched the wall.

Hinata gasped, "That was uncalled for!"

"He pisses me off!" Naruto shot back, though his tone contained little of the anger that he felt towards the Uchiha; he could not be so unkind and speak to Hinata the same way. "He acts like Sakura-chan doesn't even matter! You saw him! He completely iced up as soon as I said her name."

Shizune folded her arms, speaking up for the first time since she'd bowed into the room behind the Hokage. "This is an unfortunate circumstance," she murmured, furrowing her eyes slightly. "If Sakura _does_ come back, that will be quite awkward for Sasuke."

Naruto gawked. "Awkward for _Sasuke-teme_? Think about Sakura-chan!"

"I'm not following," Genma stated, turning his eyes to the younger jounins in the room. "Care to explain?"

"That's a complicated answer, Shiranui," Shizune murmured, glancing his way.

He winked. "Someone un-complicate it for me."

"Sasuke and Sakura-chan were. . ." Lee struggled for the right words as he spoke, not even glancing over his shoulder to look at the man he answered. "Involved. Romantically. I do not recall anything more to it than that. Sasuke waited for two years after Sakura. . . was taken. When her name was put on the Memorial Stone, he started pursuing Ino. A year after that, they were married, nine months after that, she gave birth to a son—Kenshin."

Hinata blushed furiously as she added, "Ino's pregnant again, a girl this time."

Genma sucked and switched his senbon from the right side to the left, silently musing to himself.

"He's a _dobe_," said Naruto emphatically, ignoring whatever looks he received from the rest of the group. He was amongst friends now, he didn't need to try and be polite because Tsunade would beat him over the head and crack his skull if he wasn't. "He abandoned Sakura-chan. He said she was _dead_. She wasn't coming back."

"So did the rest of us, Naruto," Gai pointed out quietly, speaking in an unusually soft voice. His black eyes trailed to Kakashi, who still remained impassive as always, his eyes focused on some point across the room, hands lazily in his pants pockets.

"I didn't."

Naruto crossed his arms childishly, like he'd done when he was younger, a pissed expression on his boyish face.

"Well, if you're all finished discussing the Uchiha's and their ulterior motives for marrying and popping out children," Tsunade interrupted, holding out her upraised hand to Shizune, who dropped a sealed scroll into her palm. She tossed it, and it arched through the air, straight into Kakashi's raised hand. His eyes were still shut. "I need you to give this to Gaara-sama when you reach Sunagakure. I'm quite positive he'll greet you, as well as Shikamaru and Kankuro. You'll leave immediately; no use waiting around when you all know what to do."

The Hokage twisted, sliding a piece of parchment to the edge of the desk where she could write on it. "Non-ANBU ninja. . ." she muttered beneath her breath as she scribbled; her hand nearly shook with excitement. "Rock Lee and Inuzuka Kiba; Hinata can't go. . ."

"Hey!" Naruto protested. "Why—?!"

"Ask your wife, don't ask me. Patient-Doctor confidentiality and the Physician's Oath."

Hinata shook her head furiously when Naruto turned to her. "Not now, Naruto," she whispered, flushing red.

"I'll send this straight to Headquarters," Tsunade said finally, waving her paper in front of her. "If Sakura is there, you return either with her, or injured enough that my beating you to a pulp will jeopardize your life."

Kakashi disappeared in a puff of thick smoke.

* * *

**  
**

Her stomach growled.

Sakura groaned and rolled over, temple pressing against the concrete floor.

It did little to soothe her headache.

Her head throbbed; her arm was sore and sticky. Her mouth tasted metallic, and her teeth felt slimy. Her back hurt, too. Most of her body felt like she'd done one of Kakashi's 'Twenty-Four Laps Around Konoha' training sessions after being beaten into the ground by seven of Naruto's shadow clones. Every part of her ached.

"Note to self," she grunted, attempting to get up. Her palms pressed against the ground, wobbling slightly. "Pick fights when Gomi-baka _isn't_ around."

Vertigo kicked in for a moment, swaying the room around her. She paused and closed her eyes, willing her vision would stop swimming. When she felt it safe, she opened them again.

The drab gray room stood still.

She got shakily to her feet, ignoring the pounding in her head and fighting the nausea that swirled in her stomach. Beryl eyes stared somberly around the room; cold concrete offering little comfort.

Her world had once been amazing. Sakura could recall growing up not only with _normal_ human contact, but with friends. She could remember her kunoichi classes, the academy, being a gennin under Kakashi and a chuunin under Tsunade. She could recall saving ninja's lives, healing and doing surgery. Parties on her birthday, and a few wedding she'd either gone to or participated in. She'd been afraid for her life at times, the lives of her friends, her town—but she couldn't remember it any other way. She'd cared about so many people.

Sakura shoved her first into the wall, fingers popping slightly as the bones ground together. She pulled her hand back, knuckles bloody, and stared.

"You're becoming a masochist, Haruno Sakura," she whispered to herself.

Her back pressed against the wall and she slid into a sit, forearms popped on her raised knees, breathing deeply as she felt a familiar feeling of claustrophobia sinking in. It was the room. It had_ always been_ the room.

Her prison.

Her cage.

The room was only about 30 feet long by 20 feet wide, but she'd never been completely sure of the measurements; something about knowing the exact measurements of her cell had made her feel even more like the hamster she'd had when she was nine years old. (It also reminded her about how, when she was nine, forgotten about same said hamster and had let the poor creature starve to death.)

Her mattress was against the far end of the southern wall—she stared to her right at the flimsy, graying hunk of fabric and springs and wondered if the thing even deserved to be called a mattress. The small, 2 by 2 foot shower (a square of stone that suck about a foot deep to keep the water from going on the floor a nasty drain in the center) attached to the western wall, and divided itself from the room by only a thin, insubstantial curtain. The sink was on its other side, porcelain. While it was a poor excuse, a rectangular, plastic-like sheet hung precariously above the sink to represent a mirror; but it was one she could not break with a regular fist. On the other side of the sink was a stained porcelain toilet.

The only other clothes they provided her with—t-shirts and jounin pants (which she was sure was their form of cruel humor)—were stacked on plastic shelves, anchored against the middle of the eastern wall.

Sakura rose to her feet again, steadier; she twisted, stretching muscles that had tightened from the position she'd slept in.

Her entire body felt like a walk bruise.

Pacing, she stood herself after a few minutes in front of her plastic-mirror, peering into her own eyes.

After five years, she still knew herself. She _wished_ she didn't. Wished she could look into at Mirror Sakura and whisper _"who are you?"_ Recognizing herself every day seemed to make everything all the more real. She still looked like herself—just with obvious changes.

Her hair was still the vibrant pink it had been the day she'd left Konoha, it just now fell to mid-back—something she hadn't done since she had been twelve. Her eyes were still green—just darker—more emerald than viridian. She was no taller than before; lack of proper nutritional food had seemingly stunted the growth most girls experienced in their late teens.

The face that stared back was no prettier, that would have been impossible. A small scar parted her left eyebrow near to the side of her face. Another dragged downward where her jawbone met her face, from her ear down to her throat. She was surprised her nose wasn't deformed, she'd broken it twice.

She shed her clothes and leaned into the shower, shivering slightly. She avoided the cold water that ran for the first five or so minute until the heat kicked out—taking the time to peer at her naked form.

She'd certainly lost weight, but she wasn't underfed. As skinny as she'd been before, but harder, rippling with muscles she would never have previously possessed. There were few things to do while locked up to keep her sane, let alone entertained. Meditation, singing, even talking to herself helped. Training was difficult, but it kept her focused. Endless hours of merely working, forging her body into something dangerous. She felt it in the way she moved, fluid, purposeful. A coiled spring, a surgical scalpel, honed to deadly precision.

If she'd been anywhere else at the time she would have felt like a weapon.

Her sides were bruised, a welt flushed her stomach an ugly reddish purple; blood crusted around the crescent-shaped scab that had formed on her arm. She stared into the mirror harder.

Finger-patterned bruises circled her neck, contrasting sharply with her sickly, pallid complexion. The cheek under her left eye was a mix between black, blue and red. Her lips crusted in the corners with blood.

If she would have been a little skinner she could have looked like the victim of some concentration camp.

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed the steam that began to rise from behind the ugly curtain, and walked painfully slowly into the scalding water. It bit at her back, but it made her feel more alive than even fighting did. She held up her arm, rubbing at the flushed, sore skin around the cut; cleaning it. The water swirled a muddy red around her feet.

She reached into the small square where her shower supplies were kept and poured some shampoo onto her hand. It felt slimy and foul as she massaged it into her scalp, but the feeling faded as her hair soaked it up, and it washed out as easily as if it had never been there. Sakura sighed and rested her head against the stone wall, letting the hot water pound against her, merely enjoying the way it made the ache fade.

Moments like these gave her the chance to realize how disappointingly low her life had fallen.

Cautiously, she removed herself from the shower, water still running. She tip-toed to the other side of room, leaning down. A square slab of concrete lifted with her hand.

Sakura picked a small razorblade from her hidden vault and slipped back quietly to the shower.

She'd never admit her vanity, and if anyone had ever questioned her on it, she would have punched them in the face; she'd die if she'd not been able to shave her legs for five years. It was a small, quaint little slice of heaven.

When she was done with her shower, she slipped the razorblade back into the vault and lowered the slab back into place. She felt strangely tired for only having woken up an hour or so ago.

It felt like days had passed since she'd first left the room.

It felt like decades had passed since she'd been first been brought here—captured.

The skin on her fist was scratched and raw, sore to the touch and red in appearance. She dressed slowly, unable to get any sort of emotion behind her actions. There was nothing that she could manage today—she had never been able to tell night from day here, but her bodily clock just _felt __off_.

The young woman sighed and dragged her body back towards her bed, dropping onto her knees. Before she let herself fall fully down, she crawled painstakingly over the mattress and towards her little hidden treasure vault.

She lifted the slab again slowly, extracting a worn Konoha hitai-ate.

It was a risk, she knew, taking it out. _I need it_, she thought to herself as she lowered the piece of concrete back into its place, and crawling back to her bed. _I just need to hold it tonight._ She tugged her sheet over her, head and all, and clutched the headband to her chest. She tried to breath—deep and slow, like she was taught in school—but the cool metal was pressed against her skin and it was all she could take to keep from sobbing.

In her mind, she could _hear_ Naruto, held face down in the dirt; but he was screaming for her. She could _see_ Sasuke frozen, body flung—broken—against a tree, unable to move. She could _feel_ Kakashi's nails bite against her palm as she was dragged away from him.

Tears streamed down Sakura's face as she pressed her nose into the hitai-ate ribbon.

_I need you tonight_.

If she would have stopped in her pain to remember the damage she'd done to Botan, she would have remembered that nobody would be stopping by to bring her any sort of dinner for a few days.

She mumbled into the coarse fabric, squeezing her eyes shut. _I love you_ died on her lips as she slipped into a restless slumber.

* * *

**  
**

TBC . . .

* * *

**  
**

You people made me so excited.

I've never had such a huge response to one of my stories. I mean, _25 Moments_ did pretty awesome; I was totally excited for it. But _this_? I just couldn't believe so many people enjoyed it! (shines) You guys gave me over 29 reviews on the first chapter _only_. But, I'm seriously excited to see how much you guys can manage. Especially seeing as I don't specifically ask for reviews, like some authors. I mean, yea, I _like_ them, but I don't require them to write. I love seeing your guys' responses. I write 'cuz I enjoy it, but I love seeing that other people enjoy it to.

Working on Chapter 3 as we speak. I plan on trying to post at least like every 1 1/2 to 2 weeks. I can't keep my promise as of yet, because I have lots of school work. But that's what I'm aiming for.

I apologize for the lack of actual KakaSaku interaction. Unfortunately, you won't get that until at least Chapter 4.

Oh yea, and just saying, people asking me "please minimize the amount of prostitution/angst" need to go look at the Warnings and the Settings of this plot. _25 Moments_ is my WAFF collection. This is my Angst Baby. Being a teenager allows me to bottle up lots of emotion and writing angst and sadness and fighting is a great way of getting all that out. And, well, the prostitution is just a huge part of this plot and will continue to be a huge part of the plot for most of the story; whether in current time or when we take looks at Sakura's time inside the compound.

- Thanks Again, Hiko Mokushi


	3. III

**Title:** Picture Trends of Black and White  
**Author:** Hiko Mokushi  
**Pairing:**KakashixSakura  
**Rating:** R  
**Warnings:** Language, adult themes/sexuality, implied rape/sexual abuse, torture, human trafficking, and character death.  
**Disclaimer:** Do not own at all.  
**Summary:** Shizune froze. "What?" The blonde woman held her hands out in front of her, trying to work things through her fingertips that she couldn't with her mind. "What would you do to get Sakura back?"

* * *

**  
**

**III. Blitzkrieg**

"Damn, Kakashi-sensei," Naruto laughed, watching as the Copy ninja unlocked the door to his apartment and stepped back to let the rest of them in. His blue eyes widened as he walked into his ex-sensei's apartment, rather impressed. "How the hell did you manage _this_? Your last apartment was nothing more than a one-bedroom trash can. _This_ is like the true bachelor's pad."

The silver-haired man narrowed his visible eye shrewdly. "Thanks, I think."

"Yea, Kakashi's got it made." Genma chuckled and slid his hand along the island kitchen table.

"When you don't spend your money frivolously, and _save_ it, then you can afford anything."

Genma rolled his eyes. "Or when your ex-student gets kidnapped and you reenter ANBU, only taking S-Class assassination missions, you tend to rack up quite a paycheck," he remarked sarcastically under his breath.

"Didn't know you were so _jealous_, Shiranui. Putting my life in jeopardy when you're at _home_,_sleeping_."

Genma shook his head and helped himself into Kakashi's refrigerator, pulling out a bottle of sake. He tipped the bottle at the dark-haired woman present, grinning slightly. "I believe congratulations are in order?" He poured some sake for himself and raised the glass before downing it.

Hinata sighed and settled onto the large brown-suede couch.

The young man slid his hand through his blond hair slowly, watching his wife carefully. "When were you going to tell me that you. . . that you. . . _y'know_!"

Kakashi couldn't help himself and let out a bark of laughter. "Still hasn't changed," he chuckled, watching Naruto match Hinata's blush almost exactly. "Have you Naruto? _You know_. You're a _daddy_, Naruto, get used to saying 'pregnant'."

The blond almost growled.

"I found out earlier," Hinata said softly, taking Naruto's hand in her own as she led him to sit on the couch beside her. "You came home, after your meeting with the Hokage." Hinata shook her head and looked at him with her pale, sad lavender eyes. "I couldn't tell you just then. Forgive me?"

Naruto shook his head. "Nothing to be forgiven for, Hinata. Unless you're asking me to forgive you for making you have my kid." He grinned as she blushed again; Kakashi rolled his eyes at his ex-student's antics.

"We'll leave at dawn?" asked Genma, watching as Kakashi searched through his cubboards.

"Yes," answered Kakashi, taking out a chipped porcelain mug. "I told Kiba and Lee to meet us just outside the Konoha gates—we don't need Kotetsu and Izumo blabbing around Konoha that they saw us leaving. We're supposed to keep this as off the record as possible. Especially after we get back."

Naruto cracked his knuckles and leaned back into the corner of the wraparound couch, propping his feet up relaxingly on the coffee table. "So?" he asked of Kakashi, who poured coffee, his back to him. "Why can't we leave now? Sakura-chan's not gonna wait for forever."

Hinata sighed and leaned forward, pushing his feet back onto the floor.

"What's she gonna do, Naruto?" Genma asked, perched on a stool beside the island table; senbon bobbing as he quirked an eyebrow. "She's waiting for us."

Kakashi clutched the mug tightly in his hands, thankful for the warmth that the porcelain transferred into his gloves.

The blond narrowed his eyes, and his wife rubbed her hand soothingly along his forearm. "Sakura-chan should be fine," Hinata murmured, intertwining her fingers with Naruto's. He lifted their joined hands and kissed her knuckles quietly. "She's one of the strongest kunoichi I know. If there's any one who could survive through this, it's Sakura-chan."

Genma nodded his agreement, sipping his sake lightly. Kakashi leaned up against his kitchen table beside the brown-haired man.

Naruto couldn't help but clench his free hand angrily at his side. "Why is Sasuke-teme being such an idiot?" he asked furiously, gazing between Genma and Kakashi. Hinata's hand tightened in his, her fingernails setting a gentle rhythm; lightly scratching against his arm.

"Who knows?" Kakashi shrugged, visible eye closed impassively.

"He used to love Sakura-chan," whispered Hinata softly, her eyes closing. "He truly did. But the way he looks at Ino. . ."

"He can't love Ino as much as he loved Sakura-chan," the young man argued, "that isn't possible."

"Isn't it?" Hinata's pale lavender eyes fluttered as she trailed her hand along his cheek. Her smile was bittersweet. "How long did you love Sakura-chan before you loved me, Naruto?"

For a moment, the young man paused, and he merely stared at the dark-haired woman before him. Then he gripped her hand tightly in his and sat up on the couch. His free hand lingered on her jaw before he pressed a soft kiss to her forehead, her cheek, the corner of her mouth, and then her lips. "I'm sorry," he whispered, laying his forehead up against hers. Hinata smiled and returned his kiss quietly, their eyes communicating words they didn't need to speak.

Genma downed his shot of liquor, poured another and shot that back as well. "All this mush is killing me."

Kakashi smirked behind his mask. Contemplating, he found he liked Hinata's logic.

Just because you previously loved someone didn't mean you couldn't find love again. If it wasn't true, he was screwed.

"I understand where Ino's coming from," Naruto sighed finally, pulling his head back and once again reclining on the sofa. This time he tugged Hinata into leaning with her back against his chest, arms wrapped possessively around her middle. "She has children now. Sakura-chan coming back, with the possibility of Sasuke-teme still being in love with her, could ruin her life."

Hinata smiled; glad that her man could understand why she was so comforting to Ino.

Genma rolled his eyes. "But that would only be if the cherry blossom is still in love with the Uchiha boy. Who knows? She's had five years to sit and stew inside a hell hole—and who's going to rescue her?" He smirked and set his sake bowl down, tugging at his Jounin vest importantly. "It'll be us, the ones who really care."

Naruto smirked and shook his head. "I wonder what she'll think about her precious Sasuke when he isn't with us."

Kakashi turned his head away from them. He pulled his mask down and took a sip of coffee while the three of them were distracted. He didn't know what Sakura would think about Sasuke, but he could think of a few possibilities he wouldn't mind.

* * *

**  
**

This was exactly the reason that he didn't want to read it. Sure, the Hokage had given it to him with in the inclination that he was actually going to read it—but did he really want to commit the atrocities this man had committed to memory? Did he want to sit back and reflect upon the sickness that swelled in his stomach?

The first entry that mentioned Sakura caused him to break a bone in his fist.

_Oct. 12  
A young girl was injured today. She had her arm wrenched from the socket. Normally the girls deal with injuries on their own, but today one of the guards brought another woman in. She was badly beaten herself—covered in bruises, and she walked with a limp. She must have been a kunoichi, she manipulated a small amount of her chakra to heal Yumi's arm. She's unique-looking, with bright pink hair and green eyes. She _says_ her name is Mitsuharu Rin; for some reason I don't believe her. After two hours, the guard escorted her back out. No word of who she_ really_ is_.

Kakashi sat, clenching the scroll in his pained fist, eyes shut.

He shifted uncomfortably in the navy and silver ANBU uniform, breath hot behind his mask. It had been years since he'd worn this outfit. It fit him, for the most part, still. He did, however, hate his mask even more so than before. It was pressing and stuffy and made him feel slightly claustrophobic. The discomfort was only increased by his anger.

The group of four had split up after they had gone off topic; Genma returning to his apartment to make sure everything was in order, Naruto escorting Hinata home and giving her a proper goodbye. Kakashi had gone straight to the meeting spot by the Konoha gates.

_Dec. 25  
Met 'Rin' again. I asked her why she was always brought when girls were seriously injured. I originally thought she was kept in a different ward. She claims they use her to keep the girls alive and well. She says she doesn't take part in the clientele. She broke too many of them. Will observe further._

_Feb. 2_  
'_Rin' is as beat up as ever. She says she doesn't know how to play nice with the other girls._

_May 16  
I was given a little extra time with 'Rin'. She's very nice, and seems to know quite a lot about Sunakagure. When I brought the Kazekage, she seemed as though she started to say 'Gaara' without any honorific. There are few who could call him so familiarly. She knew a few other names from Suna, as well as a few from Konohagakure and Kumogakure. But she's not given me any hints as to where she's from. I'm going to be watching her very closely._

Kakashi clenched his fist tighter—the bones popped agonizingly, but he barely even felt it.

All that time. . .

They had declared her _dead_ for Kami's sake.

How the hell had either Konoha or Suna never have noticed her? Found her? Saved her from that hell?

How the hell hadn't he?

"You ready to roll?"

Kakashi glanced down from his tree perch at Genma, easily recognizable to the Copy-nin behind his characteristic porcelain wolverine mask; the creature's painted lips curved in a smirk that resembled its wearer. "Are _you_ ready to go?" Kakashi snapped back, unable to control the anger, allowing a bit to wedge through. "Or do we need to cut a hole in your mask for your senbon?"

Pushing his mask to the side to display his face, he grimaced. "Shizune gave me gum," he replied dolefully, munching more obviously. The man's eyes narrowed. "You okay?"

"Didn't know you cared so much."

"Deal with it." Genma grinned before his tone became serious again. "But seriously, are you? This affects you more than the rest of us—everyone can see it." The Jounin leaned his back up against the tree Kakashi sat in, his eyes turned toward the rising sun. "When Haruno got taken. . . you changed. Naruto used to worry you'd take a mission and specifically not come back."

Kakashi rolled his eyes, slipping the scroll back into his pack. "Thanks for the vote of confidence," he said sarcastically, shoving his hand into his pocket.

"Kakashi-sensei, stop being such a stick in the mud!"

The silver-haired man glanced at Naruto, face hidden behind his fox mask. "What did I say—?"

Naruto sighed and crossed his arms. "Fine," he grumbled, Kakashi, then. But really, we're rescuing Sakura-chan! It'll be like old times again!"

"You were planning on inviting Sasuke to join us once we're back?"

"Team Kakashi—not Team 7."

Genma slid a look at Kakashi. "I doubt Hatake would want to have the two of you as students again." He smirked and chomped his gum. "For more reason than one."

Kakashit shot him a withering glare, pushing his mask to the side. Genma shifted nervously at the sight of the Copy-nin's Sharingan practically _glowing_ red; his hitai-ate was gone from his head. "Kiba, Lee," he said, glancing at Naruto before nodding to the two shinobi marching out of the darkness.

Kiba snickered, hand rubbing Akamaru's head. "I always wondered what it would be like to wear one of these things," he chuckled, lifting his mask up and letting it rest on the top of his head.

Lee frowned after removing his own and holding it in his hand. "It smells weird."

"Take off your forehead protectors. It's common ANBU procedure to leave no trace that could lead your target to believe Konoha," Kakashi coolly instructed of the two non-ANBU members. "We'll travel from now until dusk. We should reach Suna by late tomorrow."

Naruto's eyes darkened fractionally.

"Also, from now until we get to Suna, we keep our masks on; if you need to say someone's name to get their attention, use either a nickname or something that only they'll understand."

Genma smirked. 'So, if we need to, we can call you Junko?"

The man was amazed Kakashi's droopy gaze could get so deadly. He knew for sure if looks could kill he would have been melting into the earth. "Stop being an idiot."

The brown-haired man grumbled and chewed his gum harder. He pointedly slid his mask to cover over his face. Kakashi glanced at the boys, nodding his head. As if on command, Kiba, Naruto and Lee all slid their masks into place—hitai-ate hidden in their travel packs. Kakashi slid his on last, taking the time to pull the hitai-ate from his pocket and rub it before his eyes—_for luck_—before anyone else could see. He replaced the hitai-ate in his pocket.

The same hitai-ate that had fallen from Sakura's head when she'd been taken.

* * *

**  
**

"Tsunade-sama."

Unfocused brown eyes attempted to lock on the black blob that represented Shizune within her tired vision, and she raised her head slightly from where it had formally rested on her arms. "Hmmmm?" she mumbled, wiping off a bit of drool that had gathered in the corner of her mouth.

The dark-haired woman couldn't help but muster a miniature glower at the Hokage's laziness. "We've just received word from our correspondents in Sunagakure."

Tsunade's head shot fully up and her fingers clenched the edge of her desk.

"Kakashi-sempai and his squadron have arrived in Suna, unhindered; and are going to be taking counsel with the Kazekage as soon as his schedule permits it." Shizune glanced at the scroll, scanning along for anything else she felt worthy to mention to Tsunade at the moment. "If things work out, they plan on forming their strike and moving out around dusk—to get there by moonrise."

"How do they plan on attacking?" Tsunade asked, fingers clicking a rhythm. For someone recently asleep, she was incredibly astute. "Have they any sort of strategy yet?"

The scroll unrolled further in Shizune's hand. "Blitzkrieg."

* * *

**  
**

"Aren't you a sight for sore eyes?" Naruto smirked and glanced at Temari's swollen belly, one hand pressed to the small of her back, the other resting on her ever-present Iron Fan. "You've been busy, Shikamaru, huh?"

"You wanna say that again?" Temari growled, eyes narrowing.

"Don't worry," Naruto laughed, "I've been busy too."

The blonde gawked. "Hinata's pregnant?"

"Two months."

Shikamaru clapped him on the shoulder in congratulations. His face, however, was serious. "I see Kakashi, I see Lee; where's Sasuke?" he whispered quietly to Genma after drawing away, trying to keep Naruto from overhearing his question.

Genma shifted awkwardly. "He refused to come. Don't bring it up in front of Naruto."

Shikamaru nodded wisely before turning and interrupting Lee, Naruto and Kankuro. "Gaara-sama is waiting for us," he said, waving his hand toward the building behind him. "If you'd come with us, we can make a game plan. Temari can't come, but Kankuro, Gaara-sama and myself will join you."

Genma sighed. "Yea, let's go inside. It's too hot out here."

Naruto led the way into the house, his mask slapping against the back of his head. He ran up the stairs, knowing full well where his friend was cooped up. He slowed and opened the door quietly.

The Kazekage leaned against the back wall, sand slipping from his gourd in a steady, soothing rhythm. His arms wrapped around a small bundle of cloth that giggled and cooed. A small smile played on the teal-eyed man's face. Naruto entered the room as the sand pelted forward, mock-chasing the small girl. She let out a squeal and dashed toward the blond.

"Naruto-nii-san!'

Naruto lifted the child into his arms and smiled at Gaara. "All of us have been busy," he murmured with a smirk, glancing at the baby in the red-head's arms. "What's this one's name?"

"Daisuke," Gaara replied softly, bouncing the babe slightly in his arms. He glanced up finally, eyes sliding from Naruto to the girl. "Mika-chan, go get your mother."

"Hai, Otou-san!" The little black-haired girl wriggled free from the Leaf ninja, scrambling from the room and nearly striding headlong into Temari as she ran into the hall. Naruto smiled. "She's grown. How old is she now? Five?"

"Turning six in three months."

The young man shook his head in amazement. "I never imagined you as a father, Gaara," Naruto admitted, though he watched the young Kazekage with keen admiration. "I can only hope I do half as good a job as you do."

"You'll do fine," Gaara murmured, pressing his lips gently to Sano's forehead. "Would you like to practice?"

The blond offered his arms. "Cradle his head," Gaara instructed, laying the baby in his arms. Naruto instinctively straightened his posture. The red-haired man drew back, crossing his arms as he stared blankly at his child. Naruto had frozen; merely peering at the baby in his arms. He jumped when Mika ran back into the room, singing loudly.

"Ah, Naruto-kun," the young woman said, shushing her daughter, "you look good with a baby in your arms. Mika, hush."

Mika clapped a hand to her mouth as Gaara bent at the waist to pick her up. He held her against his hip, and the girl wrapped her arms around her father's neck. "Natsume, keep Mika out of the conference hall; we're not discussed topics that are proper for her ears." He smoothed his hand over Mika's head and she giggled dramatically.

Natsume nodded, taking Daisuke into her arms as Naruto offered him back. "So you're going to rid us of the woman-snatchers," she mused, olive eyes serious as she pushed a lock of dark hair out of her eyes. "I guess we should be apologizing, Naruto-kun, after what happened to your friend. I hope she's alright. I never met Haruno-san personally, but Gaara speaks fondly of her."

"Sakura-chan is a very important person to us all." His blue eyes glanced out the door and toward where the rest of his part was relaxing. "We've missed her greatly."

"I'd imagine." Balancing Daisuke on her hip, she motioned for Gaara to put Mika down. The dark-haired woman pressed a kiss to the red tattoo on her husband's forehead, taking her daughter's hand. "I'll get Matsuri-chan to watch Mika after I put Dai down for his nap. Then I'll come join you."

Gaara nodded and sifted a hand through her hair quietly before motioning for Naruto to follow him.

* * *

**  
**

"This is Hiraoka Arashi," Gaara introduced the man to his right in a cool, calm air; and the man bowed how head. "Along with Ichigawa Taizo and Tsuruya Sango, they infiltrated the compound at my command. They were present in the group for two and a half years total. It is much easier for Arashi-san to explain everything."

The Kazekage nodded his head, and Arashi cleared his throat. The man was large by most standards, with a wide face, heavily-lidded eyes and somewhat pale skin for a Sand ninja. "We were first assigned the mission to figure out where the girls were being kept. We used Sango as bait; she took on the persona of Higarashi Ami and allowed herself to be taken. We found, only after her mock-abduction, that it would be harder to get her out than we first thought; it's heavily protected."

The man sighed and glanced at Gaara out of the corner of his eye. "On urge from the Kazekage-sama, we entered as spies and got in contact with Sango. We took on fake identities as we were taught in ANBU. But the situation was unlike anything we'd ever done. Sango, under the name Ami, started taking notes on everything. About a year ago, Sango was killed. We were one of the ones who were to dispose the body—she was killed by a kunai to the throat."

Naruto's eyes narrowed angrily. "Who?"

A lean, wiry young man with bright amber eyes finally raised his head from he'd had his forehead pressed to his hands. "We can only guess," he said, in a strangely melodic voice, "that they found she was a spy. I don't know why they killed her—she was of no use as a spy other than taking notes. But we can tell from her records that something was going wrong with her; she was growing paranoid and a bit psychotic."

Kakashi grunted quietly to himself, remember words from the woman's, this Sango, writing.

_Something is going wrong._

_It's not safe anymore._

_I find myself contemplating death—it does not seem like such a bad thing_.

The woman had certainly been taking curious notes towards the end of her records. Not much of her later dates had been of use when speaking of Sakura; but it did give them a specific area of where the entrance to the compound was located. Despite going crazy, he owed this deceased woman.

"That's reassuring," shot Genma, who had long-since abandoned his gum for his usual senbon. He lounged low in his seat, hands clenched on the table top. "We're supposed to trust the word of a woman who went crazy because her mission got to her? Real comforting prospects. We've been _waiting_ for the day when we got some word about Sakura. I swear, if this is—!"

"Genma!" Kakashi's hand was hard on the man's shoulder. "You want to walk out of this room?"

Genma's hands visibly shook, but he slid them quietly into his lap, below the table, and shut his mouth

Kakashi watched his friend for a moment longer before glancing back to the. "Forgive Shiranui," he asked, tilting his head down in a small nod. "Sakura saved his life before she was taken. He would have died if not for her. He feels he owes her a return favor. There are many of us who feel the same."

Taizo nodded his head. "That's understandable," he said; though his face betrayed his unease at what Genma had pointed out. "It was difficult when we lost Sango. We would have given anything to get her back."

Lee cleared his throat, glancing up from where his eyes had been fixed on his clasped hands. "Excluding the facts that Sango-san might have gone crazy, do we have enough evidence to be able to agree with the assessment that Sakura-chan is in the facility?"

Gaara glanced at the green-clad Jounin, their years of rivalry long gone. "Positive."

Taizo nodded. "We've seen her."

"You're sure?" Naruto leaned forward in his seat, blue eyes ablaze. "What did she look like?"

"About this high," mused Arashi, lifting his hand into the air a little above his head. "Bright pink hair, about mid-back, jade-green eyes. She was a tiny thing, but when we saw her, she was giving Gomimaru the beating of his life."

"I've never seen a girl punch a guy that hard, kunoichi or not." Taizo grinned in remembrance.

Lee and Naruto exchanged a grin. "That sounds like our Sakura-chan!" Lee exclaimed, pumping a fist into the air emphatically. Naruto turned to shoot a wide smile at Kakashi, who crinkled a smile.

_Yes, it certainly does_.

Naruto clenched his hands at his side, face lit up with excitement. For the first time in years, his blue eyes were bright in a way they had lost since the disappearance of Haruno Sakura. "Do we have a plan?" he asked, teeth bared in a grin far more feral than normal. "Besides busting in and beating the ever-loving shit out of these guys?"

"That's where Taizo comes in," Arashi said, smirking.

Gaara glanced up from his seat at the head of the table and let a smile curl the corners of his mouth. "That is one of Sand's classified information—so I trust you not to go blabbing it to everyone. But Ichigawa Taizo is our secret weapon. He's got a photographic memory. Everything he sees, be it a book, face or location, he can memorize it and store it within a second. With help from a mind-jutsu specialist, he's developed what we like to call the_Angya-no-Jutsu_. With practice, Taizo-san has been able to mentally produce a 3-D image of whatever he wishes."

"Tricky little bugger," laughed Kiba.

Lee nodded in agreement, black eyes intense as he listened jealously.

Arashi chuckled. "It definitely came in handy after we'd discovered Sango's records and had to escape through the back tunnels."

Kakashi shifted and glanced at Naruto—who now had a permanent smirk plastered to his face, and had leaned forward in his seat—before settling back in his seat. He narrowed his eye and watched silently as the jesting continued, until Taizo got to his feet and began performing seals at a rapid speed.

Silence ensued.

The man gesticulated without pause or hesitation, mumbling under his breath quietly. Then he paused, and Taizo suddenly held out his hands before him, finger splayed wide; his index fingers and thumbs touched, forming a triangular-like shape in the space before them. With a final seal exclamation, the air between Taizo and the table shifted as chakra pulsed without containment. Slowly, in the middle of the table, a large 12x12 image began to form.

It was strangely insubstantial; see-through transparent and light-weight enough to float inches above the table. Kakashi could almost perfectly see Gaara directly across the table from him; the slight dulling of his aquamarine gaze being the only difference. It reminded him of the holograms he'd seen often in movies. For a moment, it rotated in place; merely a blob of floating, materialized chakra. Before their eyes, it morphed.

The dull blue—such a strange color for visible chakra—turned brown and beige and it was suddenly the 3-D image of the entrance to a cave.

"To those who don't know it, it's merely the seventh largest cave in the Tobikomi Mountain Pass; about a quarter or the way down the Chikireme Chasm on the eastern border. It acts as a divider between Wind and the unaligned Takumi village." Arashi stood now.

Taizo grunted, eyes shut as he watched the path his mind made in his head; the image sudden went forward, into the darkness and then took a nosedive into the dark rift. Kakashi felt his gut clench even though he could feel his seat firm around his torso and against his back. The blackness slowly gave way to a dimly lit, prison-like containment area.

"To those who do, it's known as "Joushi no Hitoshirezu Oashisu".

Naruto clasped a hand over his mouth and Lee looked away, sickened. Temari turned her head, burying her face into Shikamaru's chest as Kankuro rubbed his hand against her shoulder. "That's sick," snapped Genma.

Arashi nodded, watching as Taizo mentally led them right, left, left again, and then straight down a hallway even more poorly lit. "There are nearly 60 individuals working for Mujihi, but the girls outnumber them three to one. As you can see, they're kept in large, prison-like areas, where they have little more than a sleeping area, and then a crude form of a bathroom. They are kept in bars, like you now see; but whoever made this area is able to manipulate the sand into forming a wall over the bars as solid and strong as concrete to both touch and appearance.

"Haruno Sakura is supposedly kept in the ward at the back of the compound, hidden amongst Redirection and Confusion jutsus. She is taken out only when there is a serious injury amongst one of the other girls, using her chakra-manipulation and healing abilities to keep the other girls in 'working order'." Arashi's lips pursed at his own choice of words. "They keep chakra binds on her ankles and wrists, and we've information that she generally gets beaten up a lot."

The pity-filled glance the man shot their way made Kakashi's stomach churn angrily. He didn't need the ninja's _pity_; he needed his _brain_ so that he could rush into that Whatever Chasm in the Who-Cares? Mountain Pass and beat this Mujihi to a pulp, so bloody even his departing _spirit_ wouldn't recognize him.

"Can you show us the way in?" The way Naruto's fists were clenching the table top gave the Copy ninja the clue he needed to surmise the Kyuubi was focusing on the same wavelength he was.

Arashi nodded calmly. "With Taizo's technique, he can not only show us what is _in_ his memory, but as it is his memory, he can back track his steps and follow the exact same path."

"Currently, the list of those shinobi going is at 9: Naruto, Kankuro, Shikamaru, Lee, Inuzuka-san, Shiranui-san, Hatake-san, Taizo-san, and myself. I believe that no one else wishes to attend; I really doubt that we will need anyone else." Gaara glanced up; his hands folded patiently, elbows bracing himself on the table. "Shall I make the announcement to my council that we will be leaving about dusk?"

Kakashi nodded, glad to have something to distract him with. "Sounds fine to me." That gave him about twelve hours to sleep and then about six hours to eat, relax, take his mind off the massacring he'd be doing come dusk and then get ready.

Gaara nodded and got up—the others followed suit and stood out of respect. "Shikamaru and Kankuro will show you to your rooms. Sleep well."

They chorused similar responses as the Kazekage showed himself the way out.

Naruto turned to Kakashi, his face lowered to stare at the floor as though it had suddenly grown feeler and begun to attack his toes. "I want to kill them Kakashi-sen. . . Kakashi." The young man glanced up, blue eyes wide with an untold horror. "I've never felt this way before. They hurt Sakura-chan, took her away from us for five years, and all those other girls. . . I want to cause them _pain_. Am I a terrible person?"

"No, Naruto." Kakashi put his hand on the young man's shoulder comfortingly. "You're not. I feel the exact same way."

Slowly, the taller man turned away and begun to follow Shikamaru as he led the group out of the conference hall. Then he paused and glanced over his shoulder. "And I promise, we _will_ cause them pain."

* * *

**  
**

"You're the oddest guard I've ever met."

Sakura sat on the floor near to the bars, her legs curled up underneath her. She fingered the corner of the blanket with one hand, perusing through the medical supplies slowly before glancing up. Gomimaru sat on the floor before her, a foot away from the bars and just out of reach, on the other side of the cage. "You almost killed Botan two days ago. She didn't do anything but insult you."

The man's wide-spaced faced furrowed unattractively. "I don't feel like dying just yet."

Sakura rolled her eyes, but the bite was still behind the words. "Gee, you sure know how to flatter a girl."

He smirked; it twisted his face into odd proportions, making him look even more flat-faced than a pug.

"Also, Joushi-sama said he didn't want that little bite you got to get a_'staph'_ infection." He pointed one of his ham-like hands at the crescent-shaped cut on her arm. "Said we'd have to amputate your arm to make sure you didn't die, and then one of your hands wouldn't be able to heal. It'd lower your worth around here." He grinned. "Always said, if a bitch loses a limb, one less bitch in the world."

Sakura chuckled, shaking her head slightly, and Gomimaru felt quite a bit of his confidence fade.

"For someone trying to keep me happy and appeased. . . " The pink-haired kunoichi smirked and pushed a lock of hair behind her ear; green eyes focused on some spot past the man's head. "You're doing a really shitty job."

"That mean I'm gonna die?"

"I said from the beginning, I'd kill you," she murmured, pulling the blanket around her shoulders. She felt her body warm considerably with just the little bit of wool provided. "I am merely an honest kunoichi. I don't like to lie—or go back on my promises. It's a nindo I adopted from a friend."

Gomi shifted backwards before getting to his feet and activating the sand.

Sakura's smirk widened. "Going so soon?"

"You know you'll die here, right?"

The key lingered, half-turned in the ignition lock; the sand flittered halfway up the bars. Gomimaru stared down at her, face cold, eyes impassive. He seemed eager for her response.

"Of course."

The man gawked, mouth dropping slightly.

"But I plan on taking as many of _your_ people out with me as I possibly can. Only fair, right?"

The bars disappeared into a solid, concrete wall, forming a barrier between him and Sakura—a barrier between him and death.

* * *

TBC. . .

* * *

**  
**

Bet you guys have been wondering when I was going to update, hm? 

Well, yes, again, like I told you, no KakaSaku interaction. I'm pretty sure that's not going to happen until the end of next Chapter or Chapter V. But I promise you, there will be lots when it does decide to come. For Angst, this will have lots of Romance in it; which is why I put Romance first in the Genre catagory. I also decided to forgo writing two 9-10 Chapter stories (Picture Trends and Shambling Grounds) and just adding in the parts I'd already written of Shambling Grounds into this one. It actually seems to fit rather well. It just means that this is going to end up being a longer-chaptered story now. I'm not sure how long. But I know that I have planned up until Chapter VIII. And that's without an ending worked out. And that's without the section of Shambling Grounds (which is practically a chapter in and of itself :).

This is the first chapter, also, that I have posted without my beta, the lovely Alaina, reading it beforehand. Not only was she sick this weekend, but she was about two and a half hours out of town visiting her sister; so I had no chance to get it to her to be betaed. As this is the last week for the dmhgficexchange stories (of which, I have worked on the littlest amount that I have ever dedicated to a fiction) (they're to be sent in friday/saturday), I will be focusing all my energy on that this week. That and essay writing—I have an Ancient Olympics essay due, as well as descriptive sermon essay due.

And then saturday's my 17th birthday. x Yay me!

Gaara's wife is a dedication to Alaina. Yes, I love you, and I know you're screaming and probably texting me right now.

Many of you are probably wondering why I'm making everybody pregnant. I'm just making things a lot harder for Sakura to deal with when she gets back. The idea of everything being changed, everybody being paired up, her life being pulled from under her like a rug. Trust me, there's a lot more twists and turns with emotion that I'm going to be bringing in. Just because Sakura's going to be coming home soon (as you all knew she would be) doesn't mean the angst is dropped at the cave door.

Angya-no-Jutsu— Walking Tour Jutsu  
Tobikomi Mountain Pass — Plunge Mountain Pass  
Chikireme Chasm — Bloodrift Chasm  
Joushi no Hitoshirezu Oashisu — Joushi's Hidden Oashisu

Thanks again,  
Hiko Mokushi


	4. IV

**Title:** Picture Trends of Black and White  
**Author:** Hiko Mokushi  
**Pairing:**KakashixSakura  
**Rating:** R  
**Warnings:** Language, adult themes/sexuality, implied rape/sexual abuse, torture, human trafficking, and character death.  
**Disclaimer:** Do not own at all.  
**Summary:** Shizune froze. "What?" The blonde woman held her hands out in front of her, trying to work things through her fingertips that she couldn't with her mind. "What would you do to get Sakura back?"

* * *

**  
**

**IV. Haunted  
**

The first thing that made him suspicious was the fact that Kenshin was playing with a new toy in his playpen—one that he didn't remember buying.

The second was the fact that outside the window there was the collapsible ladder leaning against the roof.

Opening his door, he glanced around, before a shuffling from above caused him to crane his head backwards. "Ino?" The dark-haired man glared furiously up at his wife, dark eyes narrowed anxiously. "What are you doing up there? Did you go up that ladder? Are you trying to kill yourself?"

The blonde rolled her eyes from her place on the lowest peak of the Uchiha Mansion's rooftop. "I'm a ninja, Sasuke," she growled, crossing her arms over her chest as she leaned back against the roof. "I'm not going to die that easily."

"You're also pregnant," Sasuke growled back, leaping onto the roof. He kneeled next to her and shook his head. "I told you that if you wanted to decorate for Christmas, I'd do it for you."

Ino shrugged. "You were busy."

Sasuke closed his eyes and sighed, sitting down to the woman slowly. "Ino, we've discussed this. . . " he murmured, pulling his fingers through his hair boredly. He was getting rather annoyed with his wife's incredible ability to get herself into precarious situations. Sitting on the roof definitely qualified as one of her more idiotic incidents. "Hokage-sama said that you need to take things easy. You're only weeks from your due-date. You worry me. Going out for long hard walks with Kenshin, cleaning constantly." He opened his eyes and glanced at her again. "Trying to put decorations up on the roof."

"You make me feel so useless," she muttered, sighing heavily. Her long bangs fluttered in the air before her, before falling across her face. She had not the heart to move push them aside. "Always being so active on your ninja duties. Do you have any idea how nasty it feels to have—need I say—a fabulously toned body and then gain about 25 pounds in extra weight and look like a balloon? I feel so fat."

The Uchiha grinned and leaned over his wide, planting a small kiss against her lips before hovering above her. "You're still beautiful, Ino," he said quietly, chuckling to himself.

Ino squirmed and pushed the palm of her hand against his chest. "Ugh. You're just saying that. I'm hideous."

"Nonsense." His hand slipped beneath her over-larged shirt, and his fingers splayed across the swell of her belly; lying warmly and causing the shifting woman to still. "You women and your misguided ideas about what makes a man hot." Sasuke chuckled again at the look on her face in reaction to his words. "Unlike most men, I've wanted nothing but to have kids and restart my Clan since I was twelve. Seeing you, however large, and _very_ pregnant, is a more gorgeous sight to me than if I had the You before you became pregnant naked in between my sheets."

The blonde stuck out her tongue. "Are you saying you didn't find me attractive when I was hot? Are you attracted to large, fat women or something?"

Sasuke groaned and pulled back, sliding his hand across his forehead wearily. "There's never any pleasing you, I—"

"No!" Ino shouted, leaning up quickly to tug at his shirt, and pull him back down to her level. "I'm kidding this time. I know. I guess it's just more of those feminine hormones. They get stronger the closer to having the baby. I don't remember it being this strong though, with Kenshin. Means this one is most _definitely_ a girl."

Sighing, Sasuke closed his eyes and laid his forehead against hers. "No possibility of it being another boy?" he teased quietly. "Cause you know, if it _is_ a girl, you're having another kid. I don't plan on stopping until I have _at least_ four boys."

"You're going to make me _sooo_ fat, Sasuke," Ino complained.

"As I would expect of my wife." Sasuke gently kissed her again, before standing and holding out his hand for her.

When she took his hand, he pulled her up, wrapped his arms around her and then jumped down to the ground. Setting her safely on the ground, he patted her head gently. Ino grumbled, laying her crossed arms on her bulging stomach as Sasuke kicked the collapsible ladder to the ground.

"Don't go back up there," he ordered, glancing over his shoulder at her.

Ino groaned and leaned against the mansion. "You're no fun."

"No, I just get concerned." The man took his wife by the arm and led her back inside their home.

Kenshin squealed from in his playpen, new toy forgotten on the mattress behind him. Ino twisted her wrist from Sasuke's grasp and went to her son, lifting him while she cooed. Sasuke watched her with a narrowed eye—she was lifting again. The boy clasped his mother about her neck and Ino rubbed his back, whispering so quietly that even Sasuke couldn't hear what she was saying. It must have been funny, for the black-haired boy pulled back and shrieked with laughter. A small smile tugged at the corner of the Uchiha's mouth as he watched his family—wife and son—giggle.

Ino turned to her husband and smiled. "Kenshin says that he thinks Daddy should go up and put the lights up for Christmas," she murmured, glancing at her son, who covered his mouth with his fist in a giggle.

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Sure. But first. . . Arakida-san, could you please take Kenshin and put him down for his nap?" The boy lulled in his mother's arms, groaning slightly.

A tanned, elderly woman of about sixty nodded her graying head and walked over to Ino, who relinquished her hold on Kenshin as she smiled at the woman. "Arigatou, Mayu-san," thanked Ino, who leaned forward to kiss her son on the forehead. "If he can't fall asleep, send for me, and I'll come read him a bedtime story."

"Of course, Ino-chan," Mayu murmured as she exited the room slowly, cradling Kenshin against her hip. The little boy attempted to hide his yawn by shoving his face into the woman's shoulder.

Turning to the blonde woman, Sasuke leaned against the wall; his arms crossed defiantly. "Do I really have to put decorations up on the Uchiha roof?" he asked, slightly discontent, though his voice still held the same, bored tone. "Or may I just pay someone to do it for me."

She shrugged. "Do whatever you want."

"I don't want you angry with me."

"You shouldn't want to do it to keep from getting angry, Sasuke," Ino snapped. "You should do it because you just like doing things that make me happy." She flicked her hair over her shoulder, turning away and walking calmly into one of their many sitting rooms—the one _not_ for company, merely private use. The man had wanted to keep his Clan's home traditional, as he had known it. Ino was a sucker for a loveseat. She perched herself in her favorite one, deep maroon in color, thick and silky to the touch.

Sasuke followed her, his brows furrowed irritatedly. "That's not fai—"

"Do you love me, Sasuke?" The blonde woman's face was incredibly serious as she pulled her blanket across her lap, twisting her fingers nervously in the weaved fabric.

"Is this more hormone stuff?" he asked quietly, almost to himself. He corrected himself when he noticed she'd heard; "Did I, or did I not, get you pregnant? Twice? I don't really believe that would do that, let alone marry you, if I didn't love you."

Ino's blue eyes fixed on some spot past his left ear. "You loved Sakura once."

"That was a long time ago," he struggled.

She shook her head. "Not so long ago, only a few years." Her voice broke slightly, but she took a breath and continued, unwillingly to allow herself to grow this worked up over something that might not even happen. "You only started dating me two years after Sakura was kill. . . uh. . . kidnapped. How do you just _stop_ loving somebody?"

The Uchiha shifted towards her awkwardly. "I still love Sakura," he admitted, shrugging slightly. "But not in the same way that I love you. They are two completely different things. I love her memory, the memories I have with her; the way she was. I love you as the mother of my child, my future children, and the woman I plan on growing old and dying with. My love for you and my love for Sakura cannot be compared."

Ino closed her eyes and sighed. "Thank you."

He stretched his arms forward to hug her, and she let him; but when he moved to plant a kiss on her lips, she turned her head.

It landed on her cheek.

"I'll leave you alone, then," murmured Sasuke quietly, as he slipped from the room.

Uchiha Ino sighed and put her head back slowly. "Sakura, I'm sorry," she whispered to the ceiling, before she turned her head onto its side and stared at the object center-stage on the table aligned in the corner of the room. "I _will_ fight for him. I gave up so long ago, but you were gone, and as much as it hurts, I was a second choice. But I have a family now. . . a life. I can't let you take it away. Even if I do want you back more than anything."

The object did not speak.

A twelve-year old Sakura smiled at her, squished between younger versions of Sasuke and Naruto, in the picture of the original team seven.

* * *

**  
**

Sakura hissed lightly, pressing the damp handkerchief against the wound on her arm.

The alcohol burned in her nose, but it was a kind, comforting smell. It reminded her so much of home. How many times had she practically been _bathed_ in alcohol? Naruto seemed to have an affinity for getting every single one of his wounds infected, not to mention how bad she always managed to scuff up her knees and elbows.

The young woman laid quietly belly-down on her bed, the medical supplies spread out before her. She squeezed the rest of the remaining alcohol out and back into the bottle before setting the handkerchief back into its little square where it had sat. With a finger, she rubbed aloe onto the crescent-shaped scab. She smoothed it across her lips, reveling in the soothing coolness it brought to the mess of flesh her mouth had become.

The case even contained deodorant—she was in heaven.

It amused her darkly at how easily excited she could grow at the smallest things.

Sighing happily, she stared into the container Gomimaru had dropped off for her—his own little way of attempting to barter the safe passage of his life. Liked that was going to work at all. Did he think she could be bought off so easily? He'd have to be offering her_freedom_ for her to think of not slitting _his_ throat.

It was a normal, 12 x 10 plastic box. It was white and had the characteristic red plus painted on its lid. The bottom contained five little divided sections: one for bandages and swabs, one for the alcohol and aloe, one for wraps, one for deodorant and perfume swabs, and the last one for three small handkerchiefs. It was a little less than the packs given to amateur medic-nins when they went on practice missions.

"Dinner, Mitsuharu."

Sakura glanced up wearily from her place on the bed, sighing.

A small, rectangular hole formed in the cement wall, allowing a metal, claw-tipped pole to push a small plastic tray into the room. The pole was pulled from the room, and the hole closed back up seconds after. Grunting, the woman got to her feet, striding across to the room to stare down at the tray. Her lip lifted slightly in disgust.

On the tray was a plastic bowl of what _looked_ like oatmeal, an apple, and two pieces of toast.

"You've got to be kidding me." She picked the tray up, against the protesting of her stomach, glaring at the wall the food had just slid through. "You suck! You call this food?"

She took the apple and the toast in her free hand, and then threw the tray at the wall. The plastic clanged loudly, "oatmeal" spattering the wall and ground. She bit deeply into the apple, tossing the toast onto her mattress, next to the medical supplies, as she settled herself down on the bed again.

They thought she was a pet; that they'd tamed her and knew her reactions.

She's rather waste away than be forced into these circumstances again. Life was bad enough when you hated yourself. Being trapped by people who used you as well only made it worse.

Sakura shook her head, feeling another headache coming on.

She hated the foggy way it made her brain fell. Unfortunately, they hadn't felt the need to include painkillers in her box of supplies. She tossed the apple core across the room, where it landed in the "oatmeal" with a soft _plop_. She grabbed a piece of toast and bit down deeply. "Bite my ass, people. I have rubbing alcohol."

She lifted the small bottle to her nose and took a deep breath, inhaling the fumes the oxidized liquid gave off. It hit her scent glands strongly, enough to make her eyes water. She'd never been the type to sniff cleaning products for fun—if someone needed to get their kicks out of life by snorting paint thinner, there was _already_ something fucked with their brain. They were just making the situation worse, losing brain cells they couldn't afford to get rid of.

But at the moment, it was rather enjoyable to see the guards squirm. If she breathed too long, she could cut off the oxygen to her brain.

"Set that bottle down now, Rin."

Her hand dropped, sloshing some of the harsh-smelled liquid against her lap.

The man that stood on the other side of the falling sand was the man she feared the most. He stood just a little taller than she, with a nose that looked as if someone had slid a banana between his dark, beady green eyes. He wasn't skinny, but not fat; certainly wasn't muscular. He had no hair, skin as dark as ebony, and hands as large as her own face. Sakura had no idea why the man's mere presence could evoke such a strong reaction from her very spirit.

He carried no weapons. . . didn't even _look_ threatening.

When she'd met him, she'd first thought he looked like an old Grandpa.

Subconsciously, the young woman moved her body into a more comforting position.

Her back pressed against the wall, legs pulling up for her to rest her forearms on her knees as she hunched her back forward. Despite her defensive posture, she still felt exposed. Her hands itched to slide into gloves that could keep her from injuring her knuckles—should she need to break the wall suddenly. Even the kunai, so long since she'd wrapped her fingers around one, felt achingly absent.

She was a puzzle, broken into a hundred pieces she couldn't recover.

Her friends, her family, her love, her pet, her job, her duty, her life. . .

They had been torn away and she couldn't do anything about it. Not to this man. Gomimaru, the slob; she could beat him to a bloody pulp even with him swinging his favorite taser-toy. But _this_ man was in complete control.

"You're a smart girl, Rin." The bars were casually unlocked, opened, and closed. Once inside, the man let the sand filter back up. He stood, un-intimidated, inside her cage, hands folded behind his back, head downcast. "Obviously, you know how detrimental huffing can be to your health."

She felt like a little child again, when her mother had sat down to lecture her about things she already knew. "They need you to suck more thoughts from my brain?" she asked, her voice cold.

He_tsked_ at her words. "I don't see thoughts, Haruno Sakura," the man murmured, kneeling down before her.

Sakura flinched, her green eyes widening with horror. "H-h-how. . . ? How do you know. . .?"

"Yes, I know you aren't Mitsuharu Rin," the dark-skinned man chuckled amusedly, scratching at his large nose absently. "I've known for nearly as long as you've been here. Amusing, yes? I was strangely surprised at your ability to hold your mind against my own—it took nearly six months for me to crack your barriers. _And_ you've worked so hard to keep up the appearance of being young Rin-chan: young, rebellious; a kunoichi from some unnamed village, who doesn't two-shits about what any one thinks or does to her." A slow, confident grin illuminated his face, and his teeth shined white against his ebon skin. "But I know you, Sakura-san; and I know what you do, where you've been, who you love and miss."

Sakura stared, horrified. "Who are you?" she shrieked, clutching at her blanket furiously on either side of her lap. "Why are you here? How do you know this? I've never told anyone here." The ground felt as though it were moving.

"Hmm, who am I?" he asked quietly, tilting his head to the side. "That would require a name. I have long since forgotten it. Ironic. . . my bloodline limit allows me to view the memories of others, even hidden ones, but I can no longer recall my own. Now, I am merely called Guujin by my masters. And yes, I can see your memories. You have such a look of amazement on your face. Tell me, what are you thinking?"

She was not so stupid as to allow herself to be led into such a predicament, and she attempted to calm her surging emotions.

"If you know who I am, you know who my teacher is; what I am capable of." Her eyes were ice, voice hard—but it shook slightly, fraying at the ends. Tears cloyed at the corners of her eyes, but she refused to allow them to fall. She would not cry in front of this man, this Guujin. "You know how they would _cower_ if they only knew."

Guujin nodded. "Cower, yes, in thoughts of Tsunade-him, the Slug Princess. But not in front of you." The man drew back and stood again, holding his hands calmly behind his back. "Haruno Sakura is little known—except as student to the legendary sannin. What would Joushi-sama do if he knew, other than curse luck? You think he would return you? If you truly believe that, then Tsunade-hime picked a poor candidate and a fool for her apprentice. Joushi-sama would merely slit your throat and have your broken body tossed into the next cavern."

That smile was back on his face. "But Joushi-sama does not know, and I have no urge to inform him. I have been merely told to punish you with your memories. So I will ask you." He inclined his head slightly, raising his chin. "What memories do you want? Something that will make you angry? Make you cry? Pick your poison."

"Show me a training session," she whispered, her body shuddering with the tears she wouldn't shed. "Show me Naruto, Sasuke and Kakashi. Show me my boys."

Guujin's eyes glowed a greenish-yellow, sickly phosphorescent; and the ground, the cement walls, fell away—everything turned black.

* * *

**  
**

Shit!_ The flash of blond hair from off to his left, and then the ensuing shouts, made known the fact that they had been found out. _This mission was supposed to be easy, dammnit.

"_Naruto?" Kakashi put a finger to the com-link attached to the side of his head, pressing it closer to his ear in an attempt to hear better. "Naruto, can you hear me? _Naruto!"_ The only thing that met his ears was static._

"_Damn that boy!" He ripped the communicator from his ear and tossed it angrily to the ground._

"_Idiot. He's going to get himself killed," the young kunoichi next to him growled. "Kakashi, cover me!" The young woman sprung up from her crouched hiding spot at his feet, dashing swiftly up the tree to their right. He was able to see a tiny slip of her black boots before she immersed herself in the tree's leaves. His eye remained trained on the dark shadows the branches made above him, before glancing forward again._

_Sasuke had drawn his long-sword, spearing another ninja on the end of it before he glanced to his captain. "Kakashi," he shouted, "are you going to get out here and help us, or sit there and read some more?"_

_Shaking his head, Kakashi stowed his long-since forgotten entertainment inside a pocket within his jacket. "Well, I would—"_

_Something bit deeply into his shoulder._

_Sasuke's eyes were wide in front of him, but the shinobi had to turn; fending off another attack._

_A dagger stuck, in between bone and muscle. Grunting with effort, he grabbed the hilt as he spun, pulled it from his body, and twirled the man's own weapon back towards his neck. He missed, undershooting the target, and the metal scraped harshly against the man's left clavicle and the top of his sternum. The man let out a shuddering scream as he fell to his knees, clutching at the top of his chest. Sighing, he stabbed the dagger into the man's throat. The man shivered for a few moments, before going still._

_Retracting the bloody weapon, the man threw it, catching another shinobi up against a tree._

_A kunai grazed across his uninjured shoulder, and Kakashi slipped a kunai from his pack as he turned. The man was too close; spinning the kunai on his finger, he compressed his hand into a fist and right-hooked the man in the face. Something gave way beneath his knuckles, and he felt the bones of the opposing man's face pop._

_A broken yell tore from the ninja's throat, eyes blinded by his bleeding nose; and he threw his hands about him wildly. "You won't get away with this, bastard!" he screamed, attempting to hit Kakashi. "Roudou no Joushi _won't_ be taken out this easy!"_

"_Is that so?" Kakashi danced in front of him, dodging side to side before flipping the kunai in his palm and slicing the man's throat. "Funny. . ." he murmured. Blood splattered the Copy-nin heavily, and he wiped at it as the man gurgled, falling to the ground. "I thought you were a _little_ stronger than this."_

_Kakashi flicked the kunai against his finger and pressed his hand to the ground._

_The ninken formed from the gathering smoke. Seven of the dogs merely stared at him, hackles raised at the ensuing battle around them. The eighth, glanced wearily at bloody Kakashi. "You better have a good reason. This is incredibly inconvenient."_

_Kakashi wiped blood from his face. "Find Naruto!"_

_About a hundred yards away, Naruto was tackled to the ground. "Teme!" He prepared to punch the ninja, but found green eyes staring worried at him. "Sakura-chan?"_

"_Idiot! I swear, you're gonna get yourself killed!" She pushed him up against a tree trunk, her hands skimming over the senbon stuck into his stomach. She slowly wrapped a hand around one, twisted and then pulled it back._

_Naruto gasped at the sudden pain; but managed a grin, reaching out to ruffle her hair. She slapped his hand away, glaring. "C'mon, Sakura-chan," he chuckled hoarsely, "I'm not _that_ bad. At least I come find you when I'm injured."_

_Sakura glowered at him from underneath her hanging bangs as she tossed the final senbon to the ground. "No need to compare yourself to Kakashi, I'll get to yell at him by the end of today." Her hands glowed green and she pressed her palms against the boy's side gently. He flinched away from the cold touch, but relaxed once the healing began. "He's probably already procured some grievous injury."_

"_That's our Kakashi-sensei." Naruto got to his feet, ignoring the way Sakura looked at him. "Hey. . ." he said, nudging her with his knee and offering her his free hand—his other dug into his weapons pack, withdrawing a kunai. The young woman allowed him to pull her to her feet, and managed to offer a small smile. "I'll be fine. You just watch out for yourself. You saw how me and Sasuke-teme bandaged our wounds _last_ time you weren't around. If something happens to you, we'll probably all get infections and Baa-san will have to cut our arms off."_

_Sakura laughed, and gripped his arm tightly as her feet led her again to walk up the tree beside her—out of site. She was almost halfway up the tree when Digger's head popped out of the ground between her and Naruto. The dog let out a loud howl, causing the two young adults to pause._

"_Already injured?"_

_Kakashi appeared in a smoky haze beside the ninken, glancing at Naruto out of the corner of his eye. He lifted his hand straight up to ruffle Sakura's hair—halfway up the tree and still within reach._

_She growled and swiped at his hand. "You're already covered in blood, Kakashi!" she hollered, turning on the tree. Her body still parallel to the ground, but now she faced the forest floor instead of the treetops. Reaching down, she pressed her palms up against the parts of him she could reach. . "I swear. You're going to be the death of me!"_

_When she brushed against the wound on his shoulder, he flinched away. "At least most of it isn't mine."_

"_Both of you," she groaned, gripping his elbow with her superior strength to hold him in place. Her free hand glowed green and she pressed it roughly once again against his shoulder. "You make far too many excuses."_

_The Copy-nin pulled his arm away, glaring at her out of the corner of his eye. "I'm fine."_

"_Kakashi." Sasuke held a bloody sword before him and Pakkun on his shoulder. The triple tomoe in his eyes swirled slowly, and he lazily sheathed his sword. "There are too many of them. We should retreat. They have backups coming. I don't think they have any more information than we've already gathered. They're obviously the renegades who've been bothering Sand. I managed to kill few a few of them."_

_Naruto groaned. "Awh, c'mon, you mean we don't get to fight at _all_?"_

"_What are you talking about, Naruto?" Sakura hissed, marching down the tree trunk with her arms crossed. "You've already fought enough!"_

_Sasuke smirked. "Yes, go ahead a fight—I can tell you're itching to get injured again."_

_The blond growled and shook a fist in front of his face. "You know, teme—"_

_Kakashi rubbed his temple. "Enough," he snapped, glancing around them. Sighing, he lifted his hitai-ate, his own Sharingan spinning. "Let's get out of here."_

_A punch caught him in the side of the face, knocking his hitai-ate from his head. He stumbled into Sasuke. Blood stained his dark mask around his mouth. Kakashi touched the damp fabric and growled. Sakura bent, picking his fallen hitai-ate from the ground._

_The ninja smirked, leaping into a tree—with Naruto following._

"_Naruto, get back here!" snapped Sasuke, pushing Kakashi away and leaping up into the trees to follow them. A flung rock caught him in his side. Momentum caused him to plummet, wedged between the rock and a tree. The Uchiha grunted, coughing as his lungs compressed slightly. He scrabbled furiously at the stone, and Kakashi darted to his side to help tug the stone off of his body._

_Naruto turned, glancing to Sasuke, before another rock was flung at him._

_The blond crashed into the ground, a cry tearing from his throat as the small boulder pressed against his back. He froze, momentarily, when he a scream caused him to look up. "Sakura-chan!"_

_Seized about the middle, Sakura struggled against the large arms that held her. A fist hit her in the face, and then gripped at her hair. She shook her head, trying to get free. Chunks of pink hair came off in the tanned ninja's hand, as well as her hitai-ate, when he landed a punch straight on against his nose—she felt the bones flatten and break. Kakashi abandoned Sasuke, now freed and shuddering, to jump to her. The shinobi that held her bent his knees and leapt backwards as Sakura reached at arm out._

_Kakashi's fingernails scraped against the palm of her hand. "Kakashi!"_

* * *

**  
**

The man woke with a start.

Sakura's voice, high and frightened, still rang clear in his head; and Kakashi had yet to figure out how to remove it. The same nightmare—a television-quality rerun of that night—had haunted him ever since he'd been unable to save her.

Kakashi sat up in the bed, rubbing a hand over his face wearily, glancing around the bare room. The man had never been too fond of Suna. The heat, the sand, the lack of any good porn. . . At least this time he had something else to focus on: a consolation prize well-worth the immediate suffering.

The room he'd been shown to was empty, but that suited him just fine. A bed, a desk to work at, a lamp by the bed, and then the bathroom—completely with a large shower/bath (during the hottest parts of the day, it was common in the desert to take long baths too cool off), toilet, sink and mirror. It was unlike his own home—which had been filled to the brim with items that made it his—but he did not wish to make this place look inhabitable.

He wanted to be happy when he left than when he had come, in more ways than one.

Depressing room, annoying people, hot, dry nights, and the upcoming battle. . .

All of it was outweighed by the urge to rescue Sakura.

That was his one and only purpose.

The woman haunted his mind, almost even more so than Obito or Rin. Obito had been crushed outright; his body mangled, broken, as easily as if he'd been a porcelain doll. Rin had been killed by a quick jab to the throat with a kunai; no possible way of stopping the flow of blood or closing the wound.

Sakura. . . they had no idea if she was alive or dead.

And if she was alive, what kind of condition she was in; mentally or physicall.

Kakashi pushed his stuffy sheets from his body, sliding out of the bed to throw water on his face. He walked slowly to the bathroom, turned on the facet and put his hands under the cold, running water. He stared into his own reflection in the mirror, pulling his mask down. He'd kill whoever did this to her. Tsunade's 'Save Mujihi for the Suna ANBU' be damned; he was going to hurt this man. Even better, he was going to _kill_ him. Water splashed his face.

A sudden knock startled him, and he turned to glance at the door to his room, wiping the water from his face with a towel.

"Hey, Kakashi-sensei!" The pounding came again. Kakashi swiftly turned the facet off, freezing; he hoped that Naruto hadn't heard the running water and he could pretend to still be asleep. The Copy-nin breathed a sigh of relief when he heard Naruto call again. "We got breakfast! Get out here and join us! We'll even look in the opposite direction so you can eat with your mask down."

Silence ensued for a few, awkward moments. Slowly, Kakashi started moving back into the bedroom, thinking the coast was clear.

Naruto's fist pounded against the door again. "Oh, you can't _still_ be sleeping! Kakashi-sensei, stop avoiding me!"

Kakashi waited for a bit, and then heard Naruto's retreating footsteps. He sighed and slid his mask back up.

He did not feel like bonding with the rest of the shinobi today. Today, he felt like killing.

It had not felt like this for a long time. For the longest, his missions had merely been about the job, the duty; hell, even the money a little bit. But it had been forever since his body actually_wanted_ to kill. It was a strange, compelling feeling; not exactly bad, but never good enough that a person would want to feel it constantly. Feeling that way constantly would lead so something akin to Orochimaru. The feeling was a mix of yearning, eagerness, guilt and apathy.

For Kakashi, it dated back to early ANBU days, when he hadn't the faintest clue as to how much life could be worth. Before he'd realized how much he'd actually been given in spite of all that had been taken.

Kakashi slowly made his way back to the bed. Placing his hands on the small of his back, he pushed his shoulders backward to arch his spine. He grunted when he heard the telltale cracks, sighing as he relaxed. He lay down in the bed, closing his eyes to try to sleep.

He opened his eyes a second later when there was another knock at the door—this time it was soft compared to Naruto's pounding.

"Hatake-san? Are you awake?"

Kakashi reached for his hitai-ate, and slid it slowly over his head as he got out of the bed. He opened the door slowly, glancing around cautiously.

Dark-haired and smiling, Natsume held a small tray of food in front of her. "Naruto said you weren't awake, but he didn't sound very convinced." She walked past him into the room and set the tray on the desk against the wall. She glanced over her shoulder at him, olive eyes narrowed slightly. "I had figured that you wouldn't wish to join us. You're like Gaara; you take you're duty too seriously to get distracted." She crossed her arms under her breasts and stared at him. "You love her, don't you?"

The Copy-nin's visible eye widened, and for not the first time in the past few days, he was glad his mask kept his blush from sight.

"Don't look so surprised," chuckled Natsume, offering a small smirk. "It'd take only the best to notice. I just happen to have a lot of experience with it."

"Is that right?" Kakashi leaned against the doorframe and shoved his hands into his pockets. "How do you get experienced in love?"

"I used to work for a matchmaker in my spare time when I was a young girl." She laughed when Kakashi gave her a dubious look. "No, I'm serious. Matchmaking is rather serious in Sunagakure."

Kakashi nodded, still skeptical. "So there are still old coots choosing who young ladies should marry?"

The woman shook her head and sat down on the bed, leaning back on her hands comfortably. "More like women who want to be introduced to other men. Or vise versa. Not everyone is able to meet the person that they love the easy way—some actually have to search."

"Like a dating service," Kakashi muttered, rolling his eye.

Natsume laughed, covering her face. "Yes, I suppose. But not so. . ._humiliating_." She pushed a lock of hair behind her ear and leaned forward, placing her hands on her knees. "It's very casual. And while the matchmaker I worked for _was_ and elderly woman, she was rather shrewd about love. She could tell when you weren't serious, or if you were planning on giving others trouble. I loved her dearly, and she taught me a few life lessons along the way."

The man smirked. "Is that how you met the Kazekage-sama?"

"Oh, no, Gaara would _never_ condone going to a matchmaker, even if it was just for a joke." She shifted on the bed, still uncomfortable, before she finally pulled her feet up and folded them beneath her. "Actually, I met Gaara when Shikamaru and Temari got married. Temari was good friends with my sister before she died, and we kept up contact."

Natsume's eyes narrowed slightly. "But getting back to the topic at hand, you _do_ love this Sakura. . . don't you?"

"It's not that simple."

"Are we talking about some sort of forbidden love here?" she asked sarcastically, raising a dark eyebrow.

Kakashi sighed. "Not exactly."

"Gaara used to have a _demon_ in him," Natsumi murmured, crossing her legs. "Nobody thought that he could love. He's one of the most caring men I've met in a long time. I can tell he loves me, as well as our children. But it was a huge obstacle for him to overcome. If Gaara can overcome that, I think you should be able to overcome this little thing."

"She used to be my student," Kakashi said, crossing his arms. "I'm fourteen years her senior, and besides. . . she's already in love."

"It's been five years, Hatake-san. Do you really believe that her love could last five years inside hell?" Natsume's voice had grown soft, and she got to her feet; walking slowly towards Kakashi and the open door. She placed her hand lightly on his bicep and glanced up at him. "Trust the instincts of a woman who's been doing this for a while. There is _always_ a possibility. Please, enjoy your meal. Don't coop yourself up here too long."

"Arigatou." Kakashi stared after the exiting woman, eyes narrowed sharply. He shut the door slowly, and leaned up against it, closing his eyes. _Women are going to be the death of me._

* * *

TBC. . ._  
_

* * *

**  
**

Oh dear god. xD It took me forever to get this thing written up.

I apologize, so much, for not getting this out in the time that I wanted. I had wanted to keep everything on a 1 1/2 to 2 week thing. But with concert choir Christmas stuff, and getting ready for Christmas, and like three huge writing essays, _Picture Trends_ got put on the DL for a bit and I was mostly just writing stuff in my notebook when I got spare chance in school.

There was actually more that I was going to put in this one, but I had a breakthrough with my SasukexIno part and I just really wanted to write it. It'll probably end up getting pushed to the next chapter, and I just won't care if the chapter is longer than I normally like. My beta brought up about how we kind of side with Sakura, and get mad about how Ino 'stole' Sasuke. Well, I want you to sort of sympathize with Ino too. It's Sasuke's who stinks. xD (Can you people tell I really don't like Sasuke?)

There's probably quite a few spelling errors. I finished writing this thing at like 11:02 PM, and I wanted to get it up and posted before midnight, as I have to go to school. Alaina couldn't get on to beta today, so I'm printing out my own copy so that I can reread it and Alaina can proof while we're in school tomorrow. So, if you see anything that seriously screams out at you to be fixed, don't hesitate to mention it in a review if you want to. You don't know how much your guys' reviews help me with things that like that.

You can most definitely expect an update before Christmas. Maybe I'll even post it Christmas eve as a little giftie. I _will_ be writing a KakaSaku Christmas one-shot though. _25 Moments_ will get finished whenever I have the time. I've written down what I plan on writing, so it's merely a matter of _doing_ it.

Thanks for reading!

- Hiko Mokushi


	5. V

**Title:** Picture Trends of Black and White  
**Author:** Hiko Mokushi  
**Pairing:**KakashixSakura  
**Rating:** R  
**Warnings:** Language, adult themes/sexuality, implied rape/sexual abuse, torture, human trafficking, and character death.  
**Disclaimer:** Do not own at all.  
**Summary:** Shizune froze. "What?" The blonde woman held her hands out in front of her, trying to work things through her fingertips that she couldn't with her mind. "What would you do to get Sakura back?"

* * *

**  
**

**V. Lazarus Wept**

"Shizune!"

"Hm? Did you need something, Tsunade-sama?" Despite the black circles around her eyes, she seemed incredibly upbeat as she stuck her head from around the corner.

She walked into the room holding a small pill bottle, a bag of pills and a kunai. Setting down the bottle of pills and the bag, she seized the kunai at the right angle and took a pill out of the bag. She poked the tip of the kunai into the pill—it split directly down the center. Both halves of the pill were then deposited into the small bottle.

"Break out the sake; we got ourselves a reason to celebrate." Tsunade leaned back in her chair, propping her legs up on the desk.

"Oh?" The woman looked surprised.

Tsunade waved an open scroll in front of her face. "Temari went into labor about five hours ago according to this little note from the Kazekage. . ." she murmured, glancing down and then back up. "And now we have a bouncing baby Nara girl."

Shizune dropped the kunai and clapped her hands, cheering. "A girl? That's adorable. I'll bet Temari-san is pleased."

"Yes. . ." The blonde woman folded her arms across her chest. She stared at the open scroll. "I suppose so." The woman sighed, watching as Shizune materialized a bottle of sake out of nowhere.

The dark-haired woman poured a small amount into one ceramic bowl—then handed the entire bottle to Tsunade. The Hokage glanced wide-eyed at her confidant.

Shizune winked, sticking her tongue out playfully. "I figured you needed some cheering up."

"Arigatou, Shizune."

Tsunade smiled slightly, tipping her head back to—strangely—sip at her alcohol.

"Because really," Shizune continued, "we have a lot to celebrate tonight. Kakashi and the Kagekage-sama will be leading a team of the some of the best ninja the five counties have ever seen. They'll _destroy_ these renegades, and they'll bring Sakura home. . . This is a joyous occasion."

"Shizune. . ." Tsunade's voice was not so joyous. "Do you believe in bad omens?"

The dark-haired woman froze and set down her half-drunken glass. "Bad omens?" she echoed softly, confusion overtaking her face. "Like what, Tsunade-sama?"

"They say for every ending, there is a new beginning." Tsunade closed her amber eyes, her voice ominously soft. "That would mean the opposite as well: For every birth, there is also death. This child. . . born at twilight the eve they are to rescue Sakura. A _female_ child." Tsunade raised the bottle slowly to her lips again. Her eyes opened in time with a spike of lightning, shooting across the sky outside the window.

"Nara Shikamaru and Temari plan on naming the girl 'Sakura'. In honor of her great strength, courage, and fortitude as a kunoichi. If she is dead, it'll be in honor of the great woman we lost."

The medic-nin smirked.

"I don't believe in _omens_." Shizune glanced up again. "Care to make a wager on that?" she murmured, holding out her hand.

Tsunade smirked, eyes flashing open. "I'll take that bet!"

* * *

**  
**

"You're a horrible person." Her voice was soft, bitter. She sniffled slightly, sucking in her breath through chattering teeth and quivering lips. Green eyes burned glossily, but she faced him with a belligerent air. "You know that though, right? That's why you haven't told them who I really am."

Sakura wiped faintly at her tears but ignored them for the most part.

She smirked, despite the way her lips kept twitching. "You've succumbed to the idea that you're stuck here. You're willing to do as much as possible so that they won't kill you, but you still can't even find it in yourself to ruin someone completely. You're out to keep yourself safe and sound, no matter who it hurts."

Guujin inclined his head slightly, eyes still glowing; but they had dimmed slightly. "You think so?" His faced was pinched.

"I can see it in your expression. You know it and you hate it."

"You assume much." He smirked and then raised his hands, palms to the ceiling, in an arrogant shrug. "What makes you think that I really don't care what you think or how you feel, and I merely like torturing you?"

The pink-haired woman returned his smirk. "Because seeing my boys doesn't torture me. It makes me happy."

"How can it?" he spat. With certainty he withdrew; cloying together like a mess of dark clothes and skin—except for his glowing eyes. They blazed now, and Sakura wondered if for a moment, she has finally seen the man angry. She had never been able to pull any emotion from him before. Whatever insult or plea she had thrown or offered had bounced off of him and fallen to the floor like a leaf. But now, it seemed that she had raised some sort of ire. "To see those whom you love, whom you were taken from. . . how can that give you pleasure?"

Sakura merely smiled.

"Because I love them. And I know, that despite my predicament. . . they are happy."

"What would you say if I told you that they were dead?" Guujin snapped, and his eyes were suddenly the dully, sickly green again. "What if I told you that your precious Sasuke has been decaying in the ground and his name carved on that black memorial? What would you think then? How would you feel then?"

Her grin fell. "Then I will look forward to the day I die, when he is there to meet me."

Guujin shook his head and the sand fell in a single drop, betraying the cold steel doors behind him. He spat at her and shook his head. "Then you are a fool."

"So be it." Sakura chuckled and twirled a lock of hair in her hand. "But I know you're lying. I would know if they'd died. They are my only reason for living, for pushing myself in this hell. If they no longer lived, than I would know; because I would have no urge to continue to live." She pranced towards him as she spoke, and he merely glanced over his shoulder as he walked out of the cell.

"Then die, Mitsuharu Rin. Because you are stuck."

The doors were shut in her face. "Mitsuharu Rin _will_ die!" she screamed at him, as the sand sped furiously up. Once again, she was sealed within the room—but this time, she had no urge to cry, or plead, or pray. The tear paths had dried upon her cheeks, and for a moment, she felt strong again. "It's Haruno Sakura that will live."

She spat at the wall and then winced at the lingering smell coming from that side of the room.

The oatmeal was still stuck against the wall.

* * *

**  
**

The first sound he heard was a baby's cry.

The man turned sharply, taking the hallway to his right instead. Following the hall, he rounded a corner—he could see the crowd of people loitering around a door at the end of the hall. As he walked toward him, a blond head turned.

"Finally, Kakashi-sensei," he growled loudly, crossing his arms aggrievedly over his chest. Kiba turned from where he was speaking to Natsume, brought a finger to his lips and grinned; Akamaru gave a deep growl that sounded like a chuckle. Naruto glowered good-naturedly, but lowered his voice to a whisper. "It took you long enough. You couldn't even join us for dinner?"

Kakashi ignored the young man's irritation; spending his time glancing around at the surrounding people.

Genma was further up the hall, flirting outrageously with a female nurse in a short skirt. Gaara was leaning up against the jam of the open door, holding the hand of his young daughter. Kankuro was standing behind the Kazekage, speaking to Taizo in low, hushed tones—obvious by how little his mouth was moving. Arashi walked down the opposite side of the hall towards them. Lee and Shikamaru were nowhere to be seen—neither was Temari—but that reason was quite obvious.

"I was busy," he offered without real apology, giving no further excuse "Natsume-san brought me a meal to make sure I wouldn't starve."

The Copy-nin smirked, eye creasing pleasantly. "Besides, the only reason you wanted me there was to see underneath my mask." He chuckled slightly at the young man's disgruntled look. Naruto grumbled sheepishly.

"Naruto-nii-san!" The blond dipped low to pick the tiny girl up, enveloping her in his arms. She giggled and clasped her arms around his neck. "Otou-san and Oba-han let me see the baby! She's so small!"

"That's because she's a baby, Mika-chan." Naruto shifted her slightly against him, so that she was propped against his hip at a more comfortable angle. "You remember when Daisuke was born? He was that small. You were that small too—everybody is that small when they're a baby. Even people like Shikamaru and your Otou-san; I bet that's hard to belie—Lee, what the hel. . ." He caught himself as he glanced at Mika's interested face.

Naruto coughed slightly. "What the heck is the matter with your face?"

The green-clad shinobi had a sweet, large smile on his face as he approached. It was very reminiscent of his sensei. "Sakura-chan is so _cute_! I mean. . ."

Lee broke off as Kakashi gave a strangled choke.

Mika leaned forward and raised her hand in front of her face—looking very much like she was trying to tell a secret. "Your sensei's kinda weird, Nii-san," she stage whispered. Kakashi would have frowned under his mask if he hadn't been trying to restart his heart.

Naruto glanced up and offered his ex-teacher a sympathetic look. "It's okay, Kakashi-sensei. Shikamaru and Temari named their little girl 'Sakura'."

The man had finally been able to move. His eyes strayed passed the group. "You scared the living shit out of me," he admitted, scratching the back of his head awkwardly; he was finally able to breathe properly again.

The blond man opened his mouth to say something, but a voice interrupted him.

"Kakashi-san."

Kakashi glanced down the hallway and found himself staring into the cold, teal eyes of the Kazekage. "Yes, Kazekage-sama?" he asked, stifling a cough.

"After you're gone," Gaara instructed quietly, glancing silently as Kankuro walked in front of him and into the room. "Have Kankuro show you down to the War Room. He'll get the rest of you outfitted for tonight. We'll be down there as well."

Naruto and Lee paused, glancing back and forth between Kakashi and Gaara wonderingly. Lee's face broke open in a broad grin. "Yes!" he exclaimed, pumping his fist into the air. "We will rescue Sakura-chan for sure!"

Genma stepped up behind Lee, thumping him hard on the head. He seemed slightly aggravated—Kakashi expected the nurse turned him down. "Idiot, shut up. You're going to wake the baby. Then Temari-san will come out here and murder you herself."

"Temari's asleep," remarked Naruto conversationally.

Kakashi rolled his eyes and slid around the group. "Excuse me," he said quietly, patting Genma distractedly on the shoulder. He walked past Kiba, continuing straight into the hospital room.

Shikamaru looked pretty pleased with himself, sitting beside Temari, his hand lying possessively on her shoulder—the woman held their little girl, wrapped carefully in a pink blanket. Nastume stood on Temari's other side carrying on a fairly animated conversation. Shikamari glanced up, took his hand from Temari's shoulder, and got to his feet. His face looked strangely serious, and Kakashi was surprised to see him so solemn.

"Kankuro says we're heading to the War Room? Is that right?" the dark-haired man asked quietly, glancing sidelong at the puppet-master. Kankuro's eyes were closed, but his brow furrowed slightly as he leaned against the wall across from Temari's bed, apparently listening.

Kakashi nodded. "_Congratulations_ on the birth of your child," he murmured, raising an eyebrow slightly in amusement, "was what I had been planning on saying first. But yes, as soon as we're finished, Gaara-sama wants us to meet him down there to be outfitted."

The young man grinned. "Yea, yea, thanks." His face grew somber once again, and he angled himself away from Temari and Natsume. "Has anyone told you that we named her after Sakura?"

"Yes. Lee nearly gave me a heart attack earlier." Kakashi offered a one-eyed smile, but his face was pinched. "That's a very kind thing to do. What made you decide this?"

Shikamaru looked slightly uncomfortable.

He slid his hands into his pockets—glancing away before turning to stare back at the older shinobi. "I've known Sakura since we were kids. I may have been closer to Ino than Sakura, but I was incredibly angry when she was taken. I was part of the back-up Tsunade-sama sent to help you. And I still think, maybe if we had been faster. . . then she wouldn't have been taken. She was a strong kunoichi and a prodigy when it came to her medical prowess. She's known especially around here for saving Kankuro's life."

He inclined his head slightly the hooded ninja. "My daughter deserves to be named after such a great woman."

For a moment, Kakashi did not know what to say. He could recall when Asuma had first taken this man—still a boy then—under his wing. He may no have been influential in how the young Nara had grown, but he knew the Shikamaru now.

"Asuma would be incredibly proud of you right now, Shikamaru," praised Kakashi quietly, putting his hand on man's shoulder. "I just want you to know that. And you don't have to come tonight." The man turned his head and peered silently at the blonde woman on the bed. "There's a chance things could get pretty ugly. You have a family now. You'll want to think about them before you go jumping into anything like this."

Shikamaru shook his head. "Temari understands. I _need_ to do this. For Sakura. I couldn't help you guys once, but I'll help her this time. I refuse to believe that she's dead." A smirk ghosted across his face. "Sakura was always one of the most_ stubborn_ and _pigheaded_ women I've met. Her temper's worse than Ino's from what I've seen. I don't think she could _ever_ allow someone to just kill her."

"I hope you're right." Kakashi couldn't bring himself to say it fully. He wished, he hoped; but he wouldn't declare it. He'd knocked on wood far too many times in the past four days to curse his luck now.

The young shadow-master walked back to his wife's side and kissed her forehead, whispering something to her that Kakashi couldn't make out. Natsume was apparently close enough to hear, because she averted her eyes, glancing at Kakashi smartly. A shapely eyebrow arched slightly, and she pursed her lips before turning back to Temari.

The blonde lolled her head slightly to the side, sighing. "Kankuro, get your ugly mug out of the room; you're going to scare the baby." She _tsked_ softly, a tiny smirk gracing her features. "I don't know why you put your war-paint on yet. You won't leave until nearly dusk." Temari waved her hand, and she would have laughed if she hadn't been so tired. Her arms reflexively tightened around the bundle in her arms as she turned her eyes to her husband. "Shika, come tell me good-bye and then go with them. I can see—you're all itching to fight."

The woman wasn't wrong.

He couldn't speak for the other two, but Kakashi knew his body was practically _thrumming_ with the urge to fight.

He didn't want to wait. He wanted to play the Naruto card; blame his emotions and rush brashly into the situation, guns blazing. He wanted to be sloppy and reckless. He wanted to take his anger out.

But they had to think about Sakura.

They had to make sure they got her out of there safely. The entire mission had no point if Sakura was compromised.

Shikamaru smiled silently, walking over to the woman and pressing a kiss softly on her forehead. He murmured something to her—so soft that even Kakashi couldn't make out what he was saying. The young man kissed his daughter, before nodding to Natsume; he returned quietly to Kakashi's side. Kankuro pushed off from the wall, his hands shoved deep into his pockets.

"Follow me," he instructed, nodding his head towards the door, before walking out.

Kakashi mimicked his actions, hands sliding into his pockets as he walked out the door. Pausing, he glanced sidelong at the young men down the hallway. "Naruto, Lee, Kiba, Genma," he called, inclining his head slightly. When he was sure that they had noticed him, he continued. "Let's go."

* * *

**  
**

That night, when sleep finally settled on her, Sakura dreamed.

She coughed lightly, stretching along the mattress like a ct. If she'd been awake, then she might have pondered the onslaught of the dreams visiting her. Were they the result of Guujin playing around with her brain? Was her subconscious merely playing the devil and reminding her of those she lost? Or was she just dreaming happy thoughts?

She wouldn't have been sure.

But the dreams—she would never have the heart to call them nightmares; remembering them meant far too much—certainly made sleep less fitful.

They changed shape constantly, morphing; never remaining the same scene for more than five minutes.

"Wake up."

A loud bang on the bars caused her to start, jumping in on her mattress and pulling the sheet up around her. Sakura stared out, the lights too bright behind the figure that stood at her cage door. The light hurt her eyes, and she winced, sticking her hand up and using it as a shield.

"Up now, sleepyhead?" She recognized the voice now; the sarcasm, the timbre, the volume. She gritted her teeth.

"What do you want, Gomi-baka?" she managed, her voice hoarse from sleeping. She coughed the tickle away, rubbing uneasily at her throat. It wouldn't do to get sick in a place like this.

The dark-skinned man glowered at her—not that she could tell—and tapped his taser against the bars in an annoyingly cheerful rhythm. "I just thought you'd like to know, Boton died two hours. Well, see you later, killer."

Sakura fell back against the make-shift bed.

She pulled the blankets over her head, trying to block out the little light her swinging light-bulb created. Sleep was just as hard to come by.

* * *

**  
**

The walk down to the depths of the Kazekage's tower was a quiet, calm event. Kankuro led them slowly, Shikamaru's placid face keeping Kakashi at ease.

The puppet-master opened a large door, walking in first.

"We've got almost any weapon under the sun," explained Kankuro boredly, waving his gloved hand at the wall as he walked towards a large cabinet, stationed in the corner of the room. "They shouldn't be that difficult to locate if you're looking for something specific though."

Kakashi leaned against the door jam, his head tilted to the side slightly. The dungeon-like room was long and narrow, the walls lined with different sorts of weapons. Along the right wall were stocks of throwing weapons; the left, were the hand-held ones. At the very back were large cabinets attached to the wall, with large, wide doors. As Kankuro pulled two cocoon-like objects from inside the one, Kakashi realized that they were where ninjas stored their puppets. Observing the distinct array of different weapons the Sand-nins had in stock, he was slightly amused by the fact that they seemed to be arranged in alphabetical order.

The Copy-nin chuckled.

Kankuro glanced over at him as he hefted the straps of Karasu over his shoulders. "Something funny?"

The man shook his head. "Just amusing. Do you always keep the weapons so well organized?"

The Sand-nin rolled his eyes. "Temari is a freak," he muttered, shaking his head. "She kept fighting on being allowed to do easy missions once she found out she was pregnant. Once she hit six months, we refused to let her go out on any missions—unless it included babysitting someone. She didn't have much to do. This place _does_ look a lot better now then it did before, even if she did get a little carried away."

Lee smiled as he followed Naruto into the room, catching the end of the jounins' conversation. "Tenten would have loved to see this. I do not even think her collection was this extensive."

Naruto slung an arm around the taijutsu master, grinning and he surveyed the arsenal before him. "So what exactly do you have here, and what are we allowed to take?"

Kankuro smirked. "Well, we've got your standard kunai and shuriken, as well as poison-tipped ones and exploding ones. We've got three types of explosive ones though: ones that explode on contact, ones that have a set wick time, and then ones that require the ignition jutsu." The young man turned, attention turning the other way. "You've got your normal swords over here, daggers, switchblades, kodachi, wakizashi, maces, morningstars, battle axes, spears. . ."

Kiba glanced around, his hand on Akamaru's bristling neck. "You know, it's places that this that give me nightmares."

Naruto laughed and slapped the young man on his back.

"I'd rather _see_ the weapon than wait for an invisible jutsu," Genma reasoned, walking into the room behind Taizo and Arashi, who had their heads together and were discussing something in low, secretive tones.

The Konoha jounin played with the senbon in his mouth, walking over to stop beside his friend. Standing side by side with Kakashi, he changed a knowing glance with his best friend, as he slid his hands into his pockets. "So. . . " Genma murmured softly, trying to look as though everything were normal. "How are you doing?"

Kakashi glanced at him out of the corner of his eye. "What do you mean?" he asked, just as quiet. He shifted awkwardly on his feet, sliding backwards slightly, away from the other ninja, gathering their tools.

Genma shrugged. He lifted his hand to his face, using the pad of his finger to rub discretely at the skin under his eye. "No reason," he said, shrugging again. "You just look a little tired. Not that I pay that much attention. You just look a little. . . "

"I'm fine."

Genma sighed, glancing away. "If you say so."

The Copy-nin sighed, glancing apologetically at the man. "I just didn't get much sleep last night."

"Don't blame you. It's so damn hot here."

Kakashi nodded absently, watching the rest of the shinobi. He hoped that Genma would just let the entire situation drop. He did not need to let the man know that no, that wasn't why he couldn't sleep; he couldn't sleep because he kept having dreams about how Sakura had been kidnapped right out from underneath his nose. He couldn't sleep because he kept thinking about the fact that the woman could be miserable, hurt, or hell, even dead. If they rescued Sakura, they could possibly just be bringing her home to reunite her with her long-lost love. . .

And that wasn't _him_.

But even so. . . the man couldn't leave her there. He'd do whatever it took to save her, even if it broke his heart to watch her love someone else.

Kiba, Shikamaru, Lee and Naruto were gathered in a group, teasing one another as they tossed shuriken and kunai into their packs.

"Reminds me of going to get Sasuke," Shikamaru said, making sure the Konoha hitai-ate tied to his bicep was still tight and in place. He sighed, glancing towards the ceiling and smiling slightly. "Lee came afterwards, though. And Neji and Chouji were there." He shook his head, eyes serious. "Once the baby's old enough to travel, I've gotta convince Temari to take a trip to Konoha. I miss you guys too much."

Kiba laughed, tightening a collar on Akamaru's neck. "That's so _sweet_, Shikamaru!" he teased, making a kissy face at the young man. "You've lost your dick already!"

Shikamaru laughed in spite of the repartee. "Didn't Naruto tell you?" he asked, feigning hurt. "Hinata's expecting too."

The Inuzuka glanced at Naruto with shame.

Naruto shrugged, sliding his leg pouch up his leg. "Tease me all you want," Naruto murmured, glancing up slightly. "I always wanted to be a father. Doesn't bother me. Hinata's always had me wrapped around her finger. Now I've just got all the more reason to be the best ninja I can be."

They all glanced up as Gaara walked into the room slowly, his infamous gourd strapped to his back.

Arashi glanced up, straightening his back. "Kazekage-sama, I wanted to discuss some strategies with you," he said, ignoring the fact that the rest of the shinobi glanced at him in surprise. "There is a certain way I think we should go about getting inside. . ." The man trailed off when Gaara held up his hand.

"We are merely here to assist the Konoha ninja, Arashi-san," explained Gaara, glancing towards Kakashi. "When you came to me with this information, I sent immediate word to the Hokage. I told her we planned on investigating, if only because it is within our jurisdiction. I did, however, offer to her that Konoha could have at them first—they are the ones that need to get Sakura-san out of there. We are joining if not for the sake of Sakura-san, but for the fact that they may need help. Sakura-san has helped Sunagakure on many occasions. She saved Kankuro's life."

The normally unemotional man glanced at Kakashi as he spoke, nodding his head once in his direction. "Kakashi-san is technically the mission leader here, and if you have something to discuss, then I suggest you take it up with him. However, it might do well for you to tell everyone your idea. Most of the Konoha ninja are not used to battling in sand."

For a moment, Arashi's face was a sickly green color, before he recovered and nodded his head, bowing deeply. "I apologize, Kazekaze-sama," he said, still facing the ground. He lifted his head again and glanced at Kakashi. "I did not know." The large man's eyes drifted to Taizo, who stood at his side, looking amused.

Taizo cleared his throat, smirking. "We believe that we should blow up the entrance. Apply jutsu-triggered kunai strategically along the entrance so that when the rocks fall, they fall deeper into the gorge and leave the entrance larger so that we could rush in." He glanced around, watching the other ninja, interested with their reactions. "These ninja they have hired are nothing more than thugs; fodder really, to allow time for the 'important' people inside to get out." He made little quotation marks with his fingers. "Mujihi is in this for himself—he'd even leave the women behind if it made sure that he could get out first. We need to find where he is and secure him first. Once taken, I do not believe the rest will fight."

Naruto narrowed his blue eyes, glancing imperiously around. "Tsunade-baa-san told me that we have permission to kill whoever we wanted." He specifically avoided looking at Arashi and Taizo, instead focusing on the side of the room where Kakashi and Gaara were standing quietly. "Is that still true?"

Gaarai shrugged. "We should probably avoid mass genocide," he murmured, a slightly sarcastic tone to his voice. "There _are_ innocents in there."

At Naruto's depressing expression, the Kazekage smirked coldly. "But our mission, first and foremost, is to get Sakura-san. So really, it does not matter what you do—as long as you get her." The Kage glanced at Kakashi, including his head slightly. "Does the mission leader agree?"

Kakashi nodded. "No unnecessary deaths, though, Naruto. Don't get too carried away."

The blond kyuubi grinned, eyes narrowed dangerously. "Good."

Taizo nodded and walked to the center of the room. "Shall we make our plan?"

* * *

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The door to her cage banged open loudly, pulling Sakura from her sleep. She struggled backwards, pulling herself against the wall. She tugged the hitai-ate into her lap, dragging her sheet over her legs in an attempt to hide it. Her pink hair was mussed, unwashed and greasy. She tried to smooth it back against her head and keep the fear out of her face.

"You fucking bitch." Mujihi Joushi stood before the shut bars. He hadn't even bothered to bring the sand back up and seal them in the room; too distracted by his anger. Sakura felt her skin prickle anxiously, her green eyes narrowing to slits as she stared at his shuddering form. His eyes were on the floor, hands shoved deep into his pockets. When he raised his head again, she almost flinched at the hate within his eyes. "You filthy little whore!"

Sakura slid to her knees, preparing to leap to her feet if she was forced to. "So I take it you've heard about Boton?" Her tone was quiet—testing the waters.

Joushi had beaten her before, almost every single guard in the place had. She was used to it. But she normally gave them enough wounds to make sure that they thought twice before they did it again. The only problem was that Joushi hated touching her—at least, that was how it had always appeared.

He'd always wiped his hands off afterwards, as though she were dirty; as if she were carried some deadly disease and she would infect him.

"I didn't know you were so fond of her," the woman continued, sliding her back along the wall as she stood to her full five foot, four inches of height and stared at him. Her hands clenched at her sides. She refused to shy away from death. "I thought we were all silage, huh? A means to an end? The way you were going to make your fortune in life. We don't have faces, merely bodies that you could manipulate into buying you whatever you wanted." Without thinking, she snapped, her voice escalating to a high-pitched, banshee-like screech in her anger.

Without thinking, she curled her fists angrily.

Without thinking, she took off at a run, drawing her right arm back.

Joushi stepped to the side and caught her around the throat with his hand.

Sakura coughed harshly, her throat raw. The man tightened his hand, and she felt her airway constrict painfully. The taller man held her up, off the ground, and spun; slamming her back against the bars. Her back hit painfully, and she shuddered against the pain, her hands rising to scrabble futilely against his.

"You_ are_ fodder," whispered Joushi, staring at her. His voice was eerily calm, his eyes narrowed into slits. "You think that you are so much better than the rest of them? Because you're a kunoichi? Because you were going to be married? Because you killed who were you supposed to pleasure?" His hand tightened and Sakura coughed, feeling something warm—she tasted copper—trickle down the back of her throat as something tore with her coughs. "You're not. You need to think about this. . . you're _worse_."

He smiled at the look on her face. "Guujin has told me _all_ about you, Mitsuharu Rin. I am not completely inept. If you thought that I was never going to use your past against you, then you're quite an idiot."

"If you think that I didn't notice you, fawning over your little insignia from your days in Konohagakure," he whispered, getting dangerously close to her face. When Sakura, though running out of air, raised her fist to throw at his within-rage head, he pulled his head back, and she dropped her fist angrily to her side with another little shake against his grip.

He laughed. "You looked like a little lost child, petting your security blanket because your family failed to keep away the night-monsters."

"You've never seen real monsters, Joushi," Sakura managed, gasping for hair. He loosened his grip for a moment, allowing her to gulp in air fiercely before he tightened it on her fifth inhalation.

"Really?" he asked, blinking calmly at her.

Sakura's green eyes watered and she bit her tongue to keep from letting the tears fall. "They'll kill you," she whispered, attempting to shake her head. Her fingers tugged at his hand even harder, attempting to pull him away—try and do anything to get him to release. He merely tightened his grip and laughed in her face.

"Oh yes, your little. . . what did your mind call him? The 'kyuubi'?" he asked, watching the play of emotions on the young woman's face.

He laughed out loud.

"Yes, I forget the fool's name, but it's not like it matters very much." He put a finger to his chin as though he were attempting to remember. Then he shrugged and waved his hand—waved it off. He glanced back at Sakura, raising an eyebrow amusedly. "Or what about the Kazekage? I hear you know him rather well. You seemed to get along well with that little whore of spy they sent in. It didn't take long for us to find out about her and get rid of her. I did allow you to see her before she died though. . . I take it you discussed how you loved being kunoichi and how much life meant to you?" He snickered and shook his head, as though he thought his commented were funny jokes. "You're all so _pathetic_."

Bracing himself, Joushi pulled her away from the wall, hand still on her throat. Sakura coughed as his hand tightened and she felt her airway close completely. Her hands gripped at his wrist, and she scratched fruitlessly at him, her hands growing weaker as her oxygen level deteriorated.

"Keep your little forehead protector," he spat, tossing her with as much force as he could manage. "How will it help you now?"'

Sakura hit the concrete floor with a sickened smack, her back arching painfully as she let out a broken scream. Her throat hurt too much to make any form of noise other than a scream. She gulped in air, her body shuddering with pain as black spots clouded her vision. The air around her tasted coppery, and she rolled her head to the side, coughing painfully—it came straight from her chest—and spat blood onto the floor. She was getting used to seeing it. She attempted to push herself into a sitting position, but Joushi was in front of her again.

He threw a punch.

Her vision swam, and she didn't even try holding it—she cried out again, clutching at her jaw.

The man kneeled over her, gripped the front of her shirt and slapped her. He slapped her again, and again. Then he paused, catching his breath and pulled backwards, dropping her to the floor. Sakura moaned, tears streaming down her face as her chest rose furiously, attempting to breathe in as much as she could. Any could be her last.

"I tried to make things easy for you," Joushi murmured, standing and tilting his head to the side as he watched her. Sakura tried to wipe away the blood that seeped from her nose and gathered in the corners of her mouth. "I had never really planned to use you for clients. I just thought it would be a good way to break you."

He pulled his foot back and launched a kick into her side.

Something cracked painfully, loudly, and fire spread along her chest. Sakura shuddered, groaning, sobbing; but unable to control herself.

"You were perfect for me," he continued, as though she had never cried out. "You could heal, you could destroy. I had hoped that you could be like some of the other kunoichi and merely give in. But no." He stared angrily at her, spitting into her face. Despite the pain that flourished in her body, she wiped it away tried to spit back. He laughed darkly. "You couldn't just _give in_. You had to fight back. Injure not only guards but other women." His foot hit her side again. She curled, spitting blood on the floor. "Like Boton."

Dragging a hand through his dark hair, the man shook his head and sighed. "I had high hopes for you."

"Sorry to disappoint you," Sakura whispered, coughing, grasping at her throat. Her fingers slid against the concrete, looking, searching, for any time of grasp. "I don't jump on command."

"Another problem with you. That mouth."

Joushi paused and then searched inside his jacket, pulling something small and glittering out of the inside pocket. Sakura's eyes opened, and she stared at it. If she could have, she would have screamed. Adrenaline pumped inside of her, but her body wasn't responding—she couldn't move.

"What would your little ninja lover say if he could see you like this?"

The ring glittered coldly in the sickly pallid light, shooting from the swinging light fixture. He smiled and she shook her head, coughing.

Sakura almost wanted to laugh. "You can't be like regular mercenaries, can you, Joushi?" she asked quietly, swallowing blood and saliva the same. "You don't hock my engagement ring—you keep it so that you can taunt me with it." She shook her head again, and this time, the laugh came out. "You're the worst kind of devil alive. I can't wait until you burn in hell."

Joushi raised an eyebrow and smirked, dropping the ring to the floor beside her. Her hand swung out, and she managed to grasp it. "Can't wait to see you there. I heard it should be a blast, really. All that fire—"

He broke off as a loud explosion echoed through the cavern. He spun, ignoring Sakura completely. "What the hell was that?" Rocks bounced off the walls, clinking like ice dropping into a glass of alcohol. The man rushed forward, pressing against the bars of her cage as he hurried to unlock the door. "Gomimaru! Hikaru! What the hell is going on? What was that explosion?" The door opened and he walked out, slamming it shut behind him. He ignored the way Sakura shifted along the floor.

Dragging herself back to her bed, she grabbed the hitai-ate from her mattress. Struggling somewhat, she tugging it onto her forehead and tied it, laughing as Joushi glanced back at her.

Gomimaru glanced past his boss as he ran down the hallway, blood smattering his face. "The entrance guards have been killed, and the rock there is broken open to twice the size it used to be. There's ninja. We're under attack!"

* * *

TBC . . .**  
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Lord. I wrote for three hours straight.

I _should_ have been doing math homework. But I pushed finishing this off, and I was very angry with myself. It's been _over_ a month since the last update. School does make things difficult, and this next go will be difficult. . . but I had incredible trouble with this chapter for some reason. I was originally going to have Sakura have some dreams, and there was going to be SasukexSakura stuff mixed in there. . . I think that's one of the reasons I put it off. However once I decided I was just going to skip these little dream/flashbacks, it got written a lot faster.

Do we see a trend here? (. . . a picture trend of black and white. . . I really need sleep . . .) Hiko can't write Sasuke It hurts her skills. So I should just not do it.

But yay! We're finally at the part where they're going to get Sakura! What's creepy, if probably the three parts with Sakura in here were the easiest to write. Sakura in pain, or being beaten up, or crying. . . That's the easiest for me to write. I specifically had the idea of her being taunted with her engagement ring in there from the beginning. I spoke to Nami about it and she absolutely loved it.

Thanks for sticking around with me, guys. You all really rock.

Just saying, I have updates in my profile of one-shots that are coming out, as well as a poll! I have a poll! (I was very excited that I figured out how to use it. xD) Hope I didn't make you all crazy with waiting.

- Hiko Mokushi


	6. VI

**Title:** Picture Trends of Black and White  
**Author:** Hiko Mokushi  
**Pairing:**KakashixSakura  
**Rating:** R  
**Warnings:** Language, adult themes/sexuality, implied rape/sexual abuse, torture, human trafficking, and character death.  
**Disclaimer:** Do not own at all.  
**Summary:** Shizune froze. "What?" The blonde woman held her hands out in front of her, trying to work things through her fingertips that she couldn't with her mind. "What would you do to get Sakura back?"

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**VI. Nevermore**

Nine dark shadows waited calmly, perched upon the precipice of the Chikireme Chasm.

One of the masked shadows knelt on one knee directly at the edge of the cliff, peering over it carefully. Blue eyes narrowed behind the porcelain fox face. "I can't believe that jutsu works that good, Ichigawa-san," he muttered, shaking his head as he glanced over his shoulder. "It's here, right where you said it was—the ladder. It goes down about twenty feet to the bridge."

Naruto watched silently—three guards were stationed at the entrance to the cave. They milled about, joking and laughing. One leaned against the right wall, another dangled his feet over the edge as he laid against the ground, palms cupping his head; the third paced slowly back and forth. The one leaning against the wall lit a cigarette, blocking it from the wind with his hand. The one that paced tossed a closed silver pocketknife back and forth between his hands.

"What're we gonna do about them?" The kyuubi container asked, inclining his head in the direction of the guards.

Kakashi, face covered with his ANBU mask, let his eyes slide from Naruto to Genma, who slouched lazily beside him. "They don't seem to have noticed us yet. Genma, want to dispose of them?"

The ninja's brown eyes narrowed gleefully. "With pleasure," he murmured, slipping a kunai from his pack. His dark form flickered for a second before it disappeared completely.

Kakashi turned back to the Sand-nins, inclining his head slightly. "Once Genma's done. . . that'd be a good time to implement your strategy. How many so you think we'd need?"

Taizo nodded, face heavy and serious. "We should be safe with six explosives. We don't want to overload the entrance and cause it to cave. But we need it large enough to make it easier to move. Three on either side should be enough to break it open."

The young man grinned, twirling two different types of kunai on each index finger; he held them out slightly, titling his head to the side to peer at them. The only difference between the two was the paper seals dangling from their finger-holes. The one in his right hand was marked with a red tint and written on with kanji. The one in his left was marked with an orange tint, also written on, but with different kanji. "_Tenka-no-Jutsu_ or contact explosion?"

"Better go with the Ignition jutsu, Nara," instructed Arashi calmly. "I know you're good and all, but we don't need you making a mistake and missing your target—even if the probably is only like seven percent you'll miss. You may be a genius, but even geniuses make mistakes."

"No trust. No trust at all." Shikamaru sighed, twirled the kunai on his right hand once more before pocketing it in his kunai pouch.

None of them paid any attention to the distant exclamations of surprise from the guards across of the chasm.

None of them were surprised by the way their shouts were cut off with almost silent grunts and gurgles.

He tugged five more of the red-tinted kunai from the pouch. He paused for a few moments, tossing a kunai into the air lazily. Genma was back at Kakashi's side, wiping a bloodied kunai on a thick rag; he returned the clean weapon to his pack and then continued to rub his hands on the rag. Shikamaru smirked, giving one last toss of the kunai and catching it swiftly. He aimed. "Throwing one. . . two, three. . . four, five, six." In quick succession, the kunai left his hands and landed almost silently across the way. Three kunai each, almost symmetrically, lined the bottom portion of rock on either side of the entrance.

Taizo glanced over his shoulder at Kakashi. The silver-haired man paused for a moment, and then nodded. Shikamaru's fingers formed quick seals.

The explosion was like fireworks to their eyes, all sparks of yellow, orange and red.

Naruto slipped backwards towards the group, staring appreciatively at the scene before them. Rocks exploded outwards, falling down into the chasm. "Nice shooting," he snickered, watching as Akamaru barked loudly at the falling debris. Kiba slid his hand against the dog's neck, calming him. "Can we go now?"

Kakashi stepped forward. "Arashi-san and Gaara-sama are staying at the entrance," he explained, glancing about the Konoha shinobi seriously. "Kiba, I'd like you and Akamaru to stay there as well. Your skills are better put to use when you have more space to work with. The confines of the caves won't work well with most of your attacks." He glanced over his shoulders towards the other two men who stood near to each other.

The man watched Naruto, Lee and Shikamaru hesitantly. "Remember, there are also innocents inside," he reminded. "We don't want them injured or killed as well."

The blond rolled his blue eyes. "We're not children."

"No, but you get carried away just as quick as children do," snickered Genma, who was currently twirling his famous senbon between the fingers of his hand almost as though it was a little, miniature baton.

Kakashi nodded wisely. "Taizo-san will accompany us inside, as to show us the way." He turned to the Sand shinobi, glancing almost hesitantly as he took in the other man's stature. However, he needn't have worried—Taizo uncrossed his arms and smirked, nodding slightly. His gaze tipped to Gaara. "Kazekage-sama, if we don't come out within forty minutes, expect that we're having difficulty and come in after us."

The red-haired man inclined his head and nodded slightly.

"Alright then," murmured Kakashi, slipping his hand into his weapon's pouch. He tugged out a kunai and twirled it into his grip. "Let's get our girl back."

* * *

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**

Gomimaru shifted awkwardly back and forth on his feet.

His dark eyes flickered between Sakura and Joushi. The former was lying on the floor, half-sprawled across her mattress. Despite her bloodied face and bruising body, the woman was shaking profusely with laughter; her amusement bouncing off the stone walls. The latter was tugging at his hair, pacing before the woman's prison.

The guard patted at the drying blood on his cheek, grimacing slightly. "Joushi-sama, what do you want us to do?" he prompted, trying to get some response from his boss.

Sakura laughed harder in the background, clutching at her stomach. Her broken ribs pressed painfully, spasming slightly, as her diaphragm convulsed with laughter.

"You're wasting your time," she breathed; heaving, gasping.

Her pink hair fell in front of her face, floating up and down when she breathed. She stared through the fringe of pink at the men, her green eyes reflecting strangely amongst the pale color. "You don't know what you're dealing with here. Merely Ninja? You remember Higarashi Ami? The woman—the spy—you murdered in cold blood?" The woman grinned, laughing again despite the blood gathering in the corner of her mouth. "The Sand-nin are coming to avenge her. And you'll deal with crazy strong shinobi. . . like Gaara-sama. . . and Temari-san and Kankuro-kun. They're _murder_ you."

Joushi bit his lip in a snarl. "You won't live to see them. Stop dreaming foolishly."

Sakura's grin never faded. "Maybe. . . but they'll send my body home. To Konoha. Where I belong."

The man laughed now, harsh and grating; it didn't reach his eyes. "Not if we burn your body 'til there's nothing left!" He took a deep breath to continue his speech, but another set of explosions roused more screaming.

Gomi tugged at Joushi's arm-sleeve as though he were a child. "Please, Joushi-sama, leave!" he implored, glancing back at Sakura. "If you wish, I'll stay here to make sure she dies."

The man chuckled and bent, picking up a small stone that had fallen from the roof of the cave. He lobbed it into the cell, catching Sakura on her chest—she broke out in another fit of coughs at the impact, her chest flaring with pain. "Don't bother, she's broken. She won't be going anywhere." He lifted a lip as he watched the young woman roll over. "Let's make ready our escape." The man hurried down the hall, grumbling softly to himself.

Almost as an afterthought, Gomimaru turned and glanced down at Sakura. "If we'd met under different circumstances I find I could have probably called you friend," Gomi murmured somewhat wistfully.

Sakura spat blood on the floor. "If I'd met you under different circumstances I _still_ probably would have kicked your ass." Rolling onto her side, she clutched her chest as it constricted painfully. "Get out of my sight. You disgust me. I hope Gaara-sama sand-coffins you."

The man narrowed his eyes. "Enjoy your last few hours." They didn't even bother putting the sand back up. They just left her there.

Sakura pushed herself off the bed the rest of the way, fingering the hitai-ate on her forehead. She shifted it as it slid down over her eye out of habit, tightening it so that it stayed in place. Once finally supine along the floor beside her bed, she pressed her open palms down on her abdomen. The pressure caused something to snap beneath her fingertips, and she gasped; her eyes flashing wide before fluttering shut.

She gathered her breath back, allowing the dark spots to fade from before her eyes.

"C'mon, Sakura," she coughed to herself, trying to breathe through her nose instead of her mouth, as Shizune had taught her. Breathing through the nose made sure that not only did she regulate the balance of carbon dioxide and oxygen in her blood, but she the air she inhaled was cleaner. The type of breathing she had to do, however, differed a bit. Normally, she would have been doing Lamaze-type breathing—quick, short; like the staccato of a song. For concentration she needed long, soothing deep breaths. It hurt; with her chest burning so much—but it was the quickest way for focus. Her throat was terribly sore, more than normal; it was more an annoyance than anything. "Think! How did Tsunade-shishou say I had to activate it?"

The jutsu was complicated, she remembered, but it would help tremendously if she could remember how to _do_ it. Or. . . if she could remember how to do it without killing herself.

Amusing, Tsunade had once remarked to her. A jutsu Kabuto had perfected being taught to medics of Konoha so that they might save more lives.

She screwed her eyes up. Focus, she told herself.

"_Now, Sakura, what you need to remember is that this is not a jutsu to use unless it's a last resort."_

Tsunade's voice finally found its way into her mind. It came as both a blessing and a curse. For years, those terrible five years she'd spent there in that cell, she could not recall the sound of her shishou's voice. All of the emotions, the love, for the strong, hard-assed woman warmed in her heart. But it also reminded her of how utterly weak she was. She was a disgrace—to her friends and her teacher. _"Do not ever try this; not unless you are so close to death, you'll never regret if it should cost you your life."_

Sakura's eyes leaked tears—they fell in streams down her cheeks—but she was too tired to blink them away. Too distracted. She needed to focus.

"_This jutsu is dangerous. It is complex and intricate, and even I have difficulty executing it properly if I'm not concentrated enough. Until I can watch you perform it with enough skill to impress me. . ."_ The woman in her mind closed her eyes and sighed. A cool hand against her sweating neck.

Fingertips against her forehead.

Tsunade smiled inside her memory. _"You should perfect it easily enough. But you know how I worry. It requires a great focus, and you must remember to complete the opening and closing the gates before ever _using_ this technique. Your chakra will burn out quickly, only lasting you about forty minutes if you're at a relaxed state. Depending on your stress and level of physical activity, that number can increase or decrease. The fastest I've ever seen it burn at is fifteen minutes."_ Memory Tsunade glanced at the scroll the young woman held in her hands.

"_Your body will become exhausted, what with no remaining chakra in store. You can become faint, black out, or even slip into a coma should you push yourself too hard. The strain on your heart is enormous. You muse try to remain calm at all times, no matter what your situation."_

Sakura took a shuddering breath. I won't die here, she thought. Not in this cage. I'll let them kill me like an escaping wild animal than a pet that needs to be put to sleep.

Tsunade's voice echoed instructions in her ears. The young woman opened her eyes—lifted her hands. They shook uncontrollably, almost until the point where she had to lower them back onto her stomach. _Calm your breathing_, she said to herself as she let her hands lift into the air again. Her fingers curled awkwardly, but after breathing in and out for a few minutes, she managed to contort her them into the right seals.

For a moment, after she finished the opening seals, nothing happened.

Then something inside of her burst—or at least, that was what it felt like.

The shudder of power was almost physically painful. Cool like ice and hot like fire, all mixing together at once inside of her. Her teeth chattered as she tried to finish the closing hand seals.

She'd opened the gates, now she needed to close them. This was the hard part. Her vision wavered so that she couldn't see straight, her fingers shaking so much she could barely work them. The pounding of her blood, hard in her ears, was enough to drive her crazy. Once again, she understood why this jutsu was so dangerous—and why she had never perfected it yet. The surge of power was difficult to control on normal circumstances, and in a weakened state, near impossible. The high levels of chakra coursing through her network were enough to stop her heart if it wasn't accurately controlled. As she struggled to close her chakra gates, she was eerily reminded of a time, during the chuunin exams, when Lee had burned himself out doing just what she was trying to do.

A harsh intake of breath was the only sound she heard as her shuddering fingers formed the last seal—and her world shattered.

She shook furiously; and she closed her eyes against the way the walls around her spun. Her head banged sharply against the concrete floor beneath her, and she bit down on her tongue. And as suddenly as it had begun, the shaking came to a stop.

Slowly, Sakura got calmly to her feet.

* * *

**  
**

"All we want is answers!" Naruto held a skinny, decrepit man by the front of his shirt, shaking him fiercely. "Why the hell is that so difficult? Do you people _want_ to die or something?"

Shikamaru, who was much calmer than Naruto, glanced at the blond while he made his guard bash his head repeatedly against the wall. The guard shouted loudly at first, but soon went quiet as the repeated pounding chipped away at his skull. "As none of them are talking, I would assume so." The shadow-master released his jutsu on the guard when bits of grayish-pink brain matter started slipping down the front of his face along with his blood. The body slumped to the ground, unmoving. "Should we try to find some of these women that are supposed to be here? It might be a good idea to get them out before the roof starts caving in."

Propped against the wall, lazily watching the others wail on the guards they could find, Kakashi shrugged. He glanced at Taizo, who seemed more than a little distracted. "Busy?" the silver-haired man asked of him, twirling a kunai between his fingers.

"Slightly." Taizo's eyes narrowed, the wrinkle in his brow deepening severely. His fingers worked another complex set of hand seals, not bothering to notice when Lee suddenly flew past him, leg outstretched—foot hitting a guard with dark, burgundy hair in the chest. Several of the man's ribs cracked with loud, echoing pops as he flopped against the wall. "_Shit_."

Taizo's eyes opened, and he glared about him. "They've used the sand to move the walls around," he explained, when his fellow shinobi glanced at him peculiarly. "My jutsu has no affect if the surroundings have changed. There are walls where hallways are supposed to be. I'm useless now."

Naruto swore loudly. Genma tapped his white mask in annoyance. "I don't know," he grumbled. "There's supposed to be women around here—that's why they kept Sakura, to heal them. Shouldn't one of them know where she might be? Find the girls, find Sakura."

The Sand-nin's eyes narrowed. "Find the girls. . ." He paced towards the wall directly to his right, spreading his hands, palms down, against the concrete. The man closed his eyes and leaned against the wall, turning his head so that his ear pressed against it. He listened, unaware of the men's stares. When he pulled back, he smirked. "Lee-san, do you think that you could break this wall down without causing too large of an explosion?"

The taijutsu-master glanced at the wall, walking towards it slowly. He glanced up and down the wall, smirking broadly. "Of course."

Taizo smirked, backing away. He brought his hands to his face, cupping them around his mouth. "If you can hear me," he called loudly, voice magnified by his hands, "then back away from this wall." He glanced at Lee then, lowering his hands. "Okay, now go ahead."

Lee took a deep breath, closing his eyes in concentration much like Taizo had only seconds before. When he opened them again, he lifted his foot off the ground. Lee spun, jumping into the air, coming back down and landing on the previously lifted foot to propel himself. His other foot hit the concrete wall with a resounding thud that shook the entire cavern. For a moment, nothing happened. Then there was a loud crack that split the wall before them. It splintered, a myriad of cracks growing from the original. They watched the concrete fracture for a second longer before the stone crumbled, betraying the cold, steel bars the seemingly innocent walls had hidden.

Kakashi felt like his stomach was bottling out from a long roller coaster drop. It twisted angrily inside of him as he took in the scene before him. He was thankful once again for his mask. He knew he would be unable to hide his expression.

"These. . ." Naruto's voice was unusually hushed beside him, causing him to start slightly. The kyuubi container lifted his mask, not caring who saw. Kakashi's dark eyes drifted to the blond, finding his own feelings reflected on the young man's exposed face. "These people are sick."

Standing behind the bars in front of them were at least two dozen young women.

The prison smelt of sickness, thickly coated with urine and death. The hopelessness he could feel was almost tangible. The fear. . . Kakashi had expected apprehension and confusion. But the fear emanating from the women before him was so strong he was almost positive he could smell it, taste it; even cut it with his kunai. The Copy-nin glanced expectantly at Taizo, but the man had hardened his face.

"Hey!"

Naruto leapt forward, hands grasping at the bars. Kakashi flinched slightly at the loud holler. Shikamaru scoffed behind them. "Naruto, you don't just. . ."

The blond ignored the both of them. Peering into the cell unabashedly, he watched the women back away, frightened. Some of them were even cowering, sitting on the floor and staring with wide, fearful eyes. Others looked anxious, wringing the end of their ragged clothes in their hands, pulling fraying strings away from the fabric nervously.

And then a few even looked angry. A tall, lean young woman with dark eyes and short, choppy hair stood closest to the bar. She cradled her fist in her opposite hand, eyes narrowed almost threateningly as she peered at the ninja.

"Do any of you know Sakura?" His voice was excited, filled with hope. He even strained slightly against the steel, his face shoved between two bars, hands clutching them so that his lightly tanned skin turned white with the pressure. "Haruno Sakura? She's. . . she's here, she. . ."

Kakashi cleared his throat slightly. "Do any of you know a Mitsuharu Rin?" he interrupted, including his head slightly to peer into the prison through the slits in his mask. His breath was hot and stifling against his skin behind the mask. Naruto glanced over his shoulder at his ex-sensei wonderingly.

"Did you say 'Rin'?"

From the back of the enclosure, a short young woman with cropped blonde hair slowly made her way forward. Her brows were furrowed suspiciously at the ninja, taking in the guards lying sparsely around them on the floor. She took her time, interrupted slightly when the angry blonde grabbed her arm as she started to walk past her. The woman that spoke gave her a look and then kept walking. She stopped a foot or so away from the bars, just out of reach of Naruto's arms, before she spoke again. "Rin-chan, the medic? How do you know her?"

Naruto's blue eyes flashed with fresh excitement. "You know her?"

"Yes, but who are you?" she asked again, crossing her arms anxiously, eyes flicking to the side to make sure her friend was still standing close behind her.

"We're here to rescue her." Kakashi took a deep breath as he watched the woman, his blood pumping loudly in his ears.

"Pretty long time you took." The woman eyed Kakashi coldly, her voice even colder. "I'm glad to see you care _now_. She's only been stuck here for half a decade."

Shikamaru groaned. "Kami, are women always so troublesome? Enough, lady! We're here now!" he exclaimed, his voice rising higher than normal from the stress. Genma and Lee glanced at him, surprised at his fervor. "Can you help us get to her or not? We're not running on a lot of time here."

"Sure, I can show you the way. It's not that difficult, they only have so many different patterns for the walls. Once I figure out what one we're dealing with, I can lead you." She glanced at the bars, expectantly asking, "You wanna get me out first though?" Then she shifted back and forth on her feet. "I'm Kari, by the way," she added as an afterthought.

"Yes, of course," murmured Taizo, glancing around slightly. "Lee-san, you want to have the honors?"

Lee walked forward, attempting to smile reassuring at the women. "Could you please all back away? I do not want any of you to be injured."

Kari watched him warily, backing up a few paces until Lee nodded his head approvingly. "That's fine. Arigatou." Drawing his fists back, he punched the bars fiercely. The loud smack reverberated on the metal, but Lee pulled hi fist back, cradling it in the palm of his other hand. "I'm sorry, but the metal must be reinforced. I do not think I will be able to break it."

"That's fine, Lee." Kakashi waved to Shikamaru, who walked forward slowly, pulled a large, metal object from his pocket. "Shikamaru, I expect you should be able to?"

That shadow-mast chuckled. "Affirmative."

Slipping the fingers of his right hand into the contoured grip, he clenched his fist tightly and gave an experimental thrust. The trench knife glowed blue as his chakra bled through. "Even though I normally use them for Kagemane, I did work on learning the Flying Swallow." He lifted his hand to the bars and sliced at them, about the same height as the top of his head. The chakra-enhanced knife slit straight through the metal—the bars slacked slightly in the air. When he repeated the action a few feet below, several hollow bars gave way and fell to the ground with loud rattles. He smirked, holding his hand out to Kari, who—taking it—started through the opening Shikamaru had made.

"Okay," she murmured, walking away from the group, once she was through. She approached the far wall. Glancing down at the guard whose brains were splattering the floor close by, she gulped before glancing around. "Hmm, okay, then." Kari started down a side tunnel, stepping over the guard's dead body delicately. "Follow me, Rin-chan's down here—" A hand closed over her mouth.

Kakashi swore, retrieving four kunai from his pack. He shot off three of them, careful to avoid Kari's frozen form—he watched as the shadow avoided all three. His hand clenched around the fourth kunai, holding it close, like a knife.

"Another step, ninja, and she dies."

The man before Kakashi was almost too ugly to imagine. He held Kari's arm twisted behind her back, a wakizashi to her throat. Two more guards—ninja by the look of them—stood behind him. Gomimaru's wide face broke out in a smile.

"Shit, Kakashi-sensei!"

Kakashi growled, eyes straying to the young man. "I told you no names!" He stared, silently cursing his luck.

Genma whistled as he spotted the other ninja that had flocked around to block their exit. "Fuck. Surrounded." He sucked annoying on his gum, or his teeth; Kakashi wasn't sure. "Damn it, I hate these stupid games."

* * *

**  
**

For a moment, she merely stood there, swaying like a tall tower in a strong breeze. Her legs felt weak, unable to support her body, though she stood. It took a while to get over the dizziness, the rush of blood to her head; for a millisecond, she was sure she was going to pass out again. Her stomach nauseated. It churned furiously, and she lurched forward, falling to her knees. She vomited bits of apple, toast, flem and blood. Her head pounded, coughing afterwards and wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.

And then Sakura raised her head, and the world bottomed out for her. It shook, shuddered and quaked, but then it came to a slow, steady halt. She shakily got to her feet again.

Her legs quivered underneath her as she took a slow—almost an unbearably slow—step forward. Breathe, she sighed to herself. Just breathe.

When she reached the bars, she grasped them to steady herself, laying her head against the cool metal in an attempt to calm herself and balance her heart-rate. If she struggled too much, too quickly, her heart could stop—or explode, if she recalled her lessons correctly—from the stress. There were loud shouts from somewhere down the corridor, but try as she might, her eyes weren't strong enough to spot anyone.

That was okay though.

As long as there was noise she could be sure the battle was still going on. It was when things got quiet that it would be time for her to panic. When everything got quiet was when she had to worry who won—not that she would live long to see it.

The lights swinging over her head only made her head ache worse, but she refused to stop. As she clutched the bars, she realized that for the first time in five years, she could fully feel her chakra coursing through her veins. It felt exhilarating, freeing; for the first time in five years she felt _alive_. She drank the feeling in. She wouldn't have the opportunity to feel anything like it again, Sakura knew, and she refused to miss any part of it. For the first time in years, she could breathe.

The woman wrapped her fingers about a pair of bars directly next to each other, gripping them sturdily. She tugged furiously, closing her eyes in order to concentrate more fully.

The metal resisted, straining against her pull before finally giving. The bars bent, curving to where her hands wanted them to go. She took another set, directly behind the first pair, and repeated the process. These two gave easier than the first.

Sakura smiled, though her body stumbled awkwardly through the opening.

She bit her lip and followed the bars until they met the concrete wall. Her vision swam in front of her slightly, blurring one moment and then sharpening the next. But she could see well enough to follow the tunnel. The wall provided a stable system of support, and though she could feel her legs wobbling furiously underneath her, they never gave out.

Her pace was slow and she staggered slightly, unable to fully control her body.

The jutsu, while probably taking years off her life—not that she planned on living past the night—had released all the pent up chakra she'd been storing. It flooded her through; she felt jittery, almost as though she'd taken too many soldier pills and her body was trying to burn off the excess energy and adrenaline.

She barely felt her wounds. Other than a faint stinging sensation here and there, the tightness of her unused muscles, and the pounding in her head, it was as if her body had gone numb. That wasn't normally a good thing—in any normal nursing situation, Sakura would have been running around, trying to find out why the nerve ends went dead or why her blood had stopped flowing. In this case, Sakura couldn't be happier. It would make her death a whole lot less painful.

She couldn't feel whatever had cracked in her chest earlier, though she kept expecting to feel something shift, like it was out of place. Her jaw didn't want to work right when she grimaced, but there was no pain behind the motion. Only a slightly tug, as though her jaw was a hinge, rusted from lack of use. She was seriously surprised, but not at all unpleased.

She could hear people at the end of the hall.

While there were still the distant sounds of struggle, the immediate corridor before her seemed oddly quiet. She pressed forward, her bare feet sliding along the ground, her hands pressing into the walls to keep her upright.

She wiped absently at the trickle of blood running from a cut on her forehead.

The further she walked the more the hall seemed to drag on for forever. The voices, though, only increased in volume. If her heart hadn't already been pounding so furiously, it would have sped up. She was close. Close enough that instead of intelligible murmurs, the voices almost started to sound like words.

She picked up her pace. She needed to be quicker.

She was pretty sure her body could only maintain its present state for fifteen, maybe twenty minutes. By her recollection, she'd been walking for nearly five full minutes, maybe even six or seven. Her perception had been off since the day she'd woken up, cuffed and in the dark. She hadn't been able to see a clock, a sundial, anything; not even the rise or set of the sun.

From up ahead, there was a loud shout, and Sakura's head snapped up. She reacted on instinct.

She shot herself forward, falling down in an attempt to avoid the kunai that shot down the tunnel. She was not used to moving this fast, or having the strength to compel her body into such sudden movements. Her body felt as though it wasn't her own—jerky and uncoordinated. She bit her lip as one of the kunai cut her faintly on the arm.

All of those feelings that had been gone moments before, leaving her in blissful unawareness, abruptly returned—and increased tenfold. She tried to hold back the tears that threatened to fall as she hunched, bracing herself against the cold floor. The sudden jolt had jarred something, probably the broken rib. She allowed her form to sink fully onto the ground, rolling slowly onto her back as she raised her hands over her chest.

For a second, they glowered green, and relief spread over her face as the healing chakra achingly mended the break.

She panted quietly, tilting her head back until she stared at the ceiling. Can't use too much, she thought to herself, retracting her hands as she cut her chakra supply off with a sharp inhale. She couldn't afford to spare anymore, only enough to get her through the next hour without total exhaustion. With the massive amount she was giving off, chakra depletion was a definite.

Forcing herself to her feet, she braced her back against the wall until she could find her footing again.

* * *

**  
**

The guard was rank—unwashed clothes, dirty hands, stringy black hair and watery eyes. It almost made Naruto sick to look at him. Fortunately, that was rather difficult, as the disgusting specimen of a man had the young ninja in a headlock. Struggling, Naruto attempted, with no avail, to throw his captor off him.

"He's a feisty one." The man juggled his arms slightly so that he twisted Naruto's head back and forth. "I like'em feisty."

"Don't get any funny ideas, Udo," Gomi chuckled, lazily waving his wakizashi up and down next to Kari's throat. The young woman's eyes were locked on the weapon, wide with fear. She did not struggle. She hung there like a rag doll, allowing the man to twist her back and forth. "We were instructed not to shed any unnecessary blood." He spoke calmly, carrying on in a normal, conversational tone.

Naruto struggled against the ninja. "Bastards!" His blue eyes flashed angrily, for a moment fading to a dark red. "I swear I will fucking kill you all—let me go!"

Kakashi glanced at him worriedly, making a face behind his mask. "Calm down. There are innocent people in here too. The kyuubi would be more hindrance than help in our situation." The man's eyes slid toward the side of the room, at once happy his mask was still in place. After removing theirs, Lee and Naruto were in no position to covertly ascertain any sort of escape route. Genma and Shikamaru were surrounded and too far away for him to talk to without everyone noticing. Taizo, however, was close enough.

"There are eight behind us," the Sand-nin remarked quietly, shifting only slightly backwards to align their backs together. "None in front that I can see other than the only holding Kari."

Gomi watched them carefully, his eyes snaking back and forth between Kakashi and Naruto. "You're not all Sand ninja," he murmured, watching as Udo giggled—dodging Naruto's futilely thrashing elbows. "But that's most definitely the Kazekage outside. So what are _you_ here for? A piece of the action? Or maybe a piece of the booty?" His eyes dipped, glancing down the front of Kari's shirt as he spoke. "The Sand-beast promise you a girl or two each if you help shut us down?"

One of the girls scoffed from behind the bars. "Pig." The dark-eyed woman leaned casually against the bars where Shikamaru had sliced his hole, watching it out of the corner of her eye. She barely flinched when one of the silent guards smacked his kama against the bars in front of her.

Naruto flailed, letting out a vicious holler. "Shut your mouth. Don't you _ever_ talk about Gaara like that! Gaara has more honor and dignity than you've ever seen in your lifetime!" He worked himself into a rage, strainging and strugging against the hands that held him. "You're nothing but animals!"

Kakashi watched the young man, noting with grim satisfaction the reaction of the ninja who held Naruto.

"You do not want to anger Naruto," Lee said, glancing at the two ninja that had pulled kunai on him. "He is not your average, everyday ninja."

Genma chuckled, blowing a bubble behind his mask. "What happened to fake names, eh Junko?"

Kakashi shot a glare at the wolverine-faced shinobi.

"Why are you here?" Gomimaru's voice lost its gentlemanly quality. Kari whimpered, a trickle of blood running down her neck as the short-sword pressed against her skin. "Answer me that."

"Well, that's the big question, isn't it?" Shikamaru smirked, pulling his pack slowly off of his leg. He tossed it to the closest ninja—the rebel caught it warily, unsure of what the ninja was doing. Slowly lowering himself to the floor, Shikamaru stretched his legs out slightly, looking every bit like he was giving up.

Naruto paused in his attempt to get away. "Nara, you idiot, what are you doing?"

Raising his head, Shikamaru watched Gomimaru interestedly, interlacing his fingers in his lap. "The ultimate puzzle, after all; who are we,_truly_? Why are we here? What is our purpose in life?" The man chuckled, getting to his feet again. "Personally, I feel _you_ were put in this world to test my faith in peoples' thinking abilities. You're as much of an idiot as you look. You should never have let me get focused."

His grip on Kari tightening, Gomi glanced at the ninja beside Lee warningly. "Hikaru, what is he talking about?" The ninja in question shrugged, his eyes flickering between Gomimaru and Shikamaru.

"Aw, c'mon, Gomi, he's just—"

Udo's back snapped straight.

"Udo?"

The man let go of Naruto as Shikamaru mimed mockingly in the air. "Not all ninja rely on taijutsu to fight."

Naruto laughed, sucker punching the ninja that once held him. "Idiots." His hand slipping into his pack, he took a kunai in each hand, grinning ear to ear. "Let's show'em what _real_ ninja can do." As if on a command, four more ninja—two by Lee and two by Genma—went stiff-backed as well.

Lee leapt into the air, kicking the ninja on the right as he punched the ninja on the left. Genma's ninja went down even faster, senbon to the throat effectively severing the carotid arteries, cutting off blood supply to the head. He dashed to Shikamaru's side, standing back to back with the younger ninja.

Naruto growled loudly, leaping into the air and slashing wildly at the remaining ninja. Two of them scattered: one running off towards the entrance, and the other taking off down another tunnel. The dark-eyed young woman slipped discretely out from between the bars. The one retreating to the entrance was stopped short by four shuriken to the back from Taizo, while the one running down the tunnel was tackled to the ground by the woman, who snapped his neck, breathing hard. The other faced off against Naruto, whirling his kama before him. Naruto took a shot to the gut, merely grunting as he drove a kunai deep in the man's chest cavity.

Gomimaru slowly walked backwards, dragging Kari along helpless after him. "Come now. . ." His eyes roved desperately. "I can hand you Joushi-sa—" He cut himself off, realizing perhaps too late that addressing the man in a honorable way was perhaps not a good idea. "Let's work this out."

Kakashi's eyes narrowed behind his mask. "You disgust me." He tightened his grip on his kunai, holding it before him.

"So it's going to be like that?" The man shook his head. "I had hoped—" Gomi's words turned into a howl when Kari managed to sink her teeth into his wrist. He let her go, tearing his hand from her mouth. Swiftly, he backhanded her before throwing his sword arm forward. It caught Kari in the stomach. Kakashi caught her as she fell backwards.

"You."

The words were whispered. Her voice was too raw and hoarse to manage anything louder, but when she spoke, the men came to a stop.

Gomimaru turned sharply. "How the hell did you get out?" he screamed.

Sakura walked calmly out of the shadows, her beryl eyes filled with hate as tears streamed down her face. She clutched at the cut on her right arm with her left, leaning slightly against the wall. "Kari-chan didn't deserve this." She closed her eyes and shook her head, wiping at her face. When her eyes opened again, she ran at him. _"You fucking bastard!"_ Gomimaru had no time to dodge as her chakra-induced punch connected with his face.

Sakura stumbled as the guard's body collapsed, falling against him. "You. . . " she growled. "I told you I'd kill you." Her hand closed around his neck as he struggled to get to his feet, pulling him back down to her level as she scrambled to straddle his stomach. She punched him again, shattering his nose. Blood clouded his vision.

She didn't stop punching. His hands gripped at her thighs frantically, straining to tug her from her perch. Blood welled before her. Gomi's hands slowly loosened their grip. His face ceased looking like a face. It began to look like a giant meat pile. Sakura's fists kept pounding. Gomimaru's blood splattered her clothes, hands, and face; the skin on her knuckles split and tore as she punched away at the man's very skull. Her vision blurred. Her breathing grew ragged.

"Sakura."

Inching forward, Kakashi's hand found her shoulder and he shook her slightly.

He almost flinched at the harsh look in her eyes when she turned her head furiously to meet his gaze. "Sakura, it's me." His other hand lifted to slip his mask off his face; it clattered loudly to the floor—Sakura flinched at the sound. "It's Kakashi."

Sakura blinked, confusion setting in as her chakra neared depletion and she hovered on the brink of exhaustion. His face shuddered before her—a jumble of colors and shapes. "K-k-kakashi?" she stuttered, as though in a daze. Her mouth wouldn't work right around the syllables of his name. Then she smiled dreamily, her eyes slipping closed. "You came."

"No, Sakura!" Kakashi dropped to one knee, catching her as she fell and pulling her towards him; off of Gomi's mutilated corpse. He cradled her head in one hand, leaning her back against his upraised leg and chest. He smoothed her pink hair from her face, using his thumb to wipe a smear of blood from her cheek. "You're not allowed to die!"

"Kakashi-sensei! Is that. . . It is! It's Sakura-chan! Is she okay?" Naruto's anxious voice was approaching in time with the loud slamming of his feet against the floor.

Kakashi's fingers fluttered hurriedly against her neck, pressing at the junction of her head and her neck, underneath her jaw. His fingers fell away slowly.

"She's fine," he sighed, closing his eyes as his fingers slid over the hitai-ate on her head, a small smile gracing his face as he recognized it. "She just passed out. Her pulse is still strong." Leaning down, he scooped her limp form into his arms. "Get the girls out. She needs medical care."

* * *

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At the moment, before I say anything else, I would like to thank those few people that—even though I told everyone I will never ask for reviews—have reviewed every chapter. I'd like to tell you that I actually look forward to posting new chapters, just to see what you guys say.

I hope you stick around for the full ride: **Kimeko-28**,** Jester08**,** roxnroll**,** Mateba**,** amyXD**,** Norikoko**,** bones-angel**,** beautyinsleep** (haha, I love you xD), **ShipperTrish** (another whom I love), and of course, my homegirl,** DemonMistress2603**—couldn't live without you, Nami.

This one was the longest one yet. And while it took a long time, it was well worth it.

I'm so proud of this fic. I think it's the one I'm the most proud of. Originally, as I said in Chapter I, this was only supposed to be about 20,000 words, 3 chapters long. I now have double that amount of chapters—have up to Chapter XI planned up, and have over 30,000 words. I'm very proud of myself. I never expected to start writing a long story.

I'm posting this without Nami looked at it—mainly because Nami is not feeling well (I'm not feeling very good either, to be honest) and because if any of you noticed, from 10-12, they decided to disable Document Uploading/Maintenance. I wanted to get this up really bad. I literally wrote, just today, over 3,000 words on the fly. I am so happy to be getting this out finally. If you see any mistakes, feel free to point them out. I haven't really looked this over at all. I'm printing out a version for Nami to look over at school.

Hope you're all happy, I know people have been waiting for an update.

- Hiko Mokushi


	7. VII

**Title:** Picture Trends of Black and White  
**Author:** Hiko Mokushi  
**Pairing: **KakashixSakura  
**Rating:** R  
**Warnings:** Language, adult themes/sexuality, implied rape/sexual abuse, torture, human trafficking, and character death.  
**Disclaimer:** Do not own at all.  
**Summary:** Shizune froze. "What?" The blonde woman held her hands out in front of her, trying to work things through her fingertips that she couldn't with her mind. "What would you do to get Sakura back?"

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**VII. Haven**

There was something about seeing a once-great man beaten and broken, lying on the floor—not begging for his life, but still cursing and threatening—that made Kakashi sick in his stomach.

This man, if he could even be called a man, had done so many atrocious things to people—women, helpless women—who had never caused him any harm. Who had never even met him. Who never even knew his name. All for the sake of money, for his own greed, he had allowed, perpetrated and even inflicted the abuse and suffering of others. He deserved whatever end that fate should hand him, even if that meant cruel and unusual punishment. For once, though he hardly agreed with the sentiment, he understood why the families of victims were not allowed any sort of influence concerning their punishment. For the countless horrors enacted on those women—Sakura most importantly—he deserved to die a thousand deaths. Kakashi would have even delivered the fatal blow, if he knew _Tsukuyomi_.

"Did you think that you were going to get away with this, Mujihi?" Kankuro toyed with his puppet's chakra strings, making Karasu jitter slightly in place. "We've been tracking you for nearly two and a half years now. It was only a matter of time before we caught you. Only now. . . You've brought a whole world of _pain_ down upon you."

Kneeling on the ground before the shorter man, Joushi's hands were tied behind his back, and he peered with his bright blue eyes up through his pale red hair. The look of contempt on his face was marred only by the slight fear that twinkled in the corners of his eyes. Disdainfully rolling his eyes at the younger man's words, he glanced away, watching the rest of the men in the room.

Kakashi thought it was amusing. The man was attempting to think as Ninja do. Stay too focused on the one making all the ruckus, and you'll miss the real attack: silent comrades who sneak up from your blind sides while the bait keeps the prey distracted. This was no trap. Joushi had already been caught—this was his _cage_. Anyone that meant him any harm at all would want him to see it coming. They would want to see him quake with fear before they ever reached him.

A scenario that wasn't entirely out of the question, the copy-nin mused. Joushi must have realized that in his precarious situation, he should pray they only killed him. They would question his minors, see what little information the dregs of his miniature society would give over to them in exchange for slight leniency on their sentencing. After that was finished, they would take their findings straight to Mujihi and hope to threaten the rest of the information out of him, promising a swifter death if he should cooperate.

"How does it feel?" asked Arashi, his heavily-lidded eyes flashing angrily. He stepped close, stomping his feet just to watch the lesser man flinch. It was a brute's scare tactic, but the tiny jerks Joushi's body made at each impact gave Kakashi a little bit of satisfaction. "I saw how the women were kept. It went on before my own _eyes_. How does it feel, Mujihi, to know that you're about to suffer as much as you made them suffer?"

"All this posturing," murmured Mujihi quietly, his soft voice a paradox to the rowdiness of the ninjas around him, "for one measly little girl?"

Genma's teeth clicked sharply against the senbon in his mouth. "That 'little girl' is worth a hundred of you."

Joushi smirked, head cocked to the side as he peered at them audaciously through his hair. "She should be, for the price of all her headaches. Never before have I seen a more stubborn-headed woman in my entire life. It wouldn't have been so bad for her, if she'd merely given up. If only she could have seen our side. I had high hopes for her. Many of the girls rose in ranks and were able to buy their own freedom."

Naruto's fist hit the wall and Rock Lee put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Sakura would have never given up!" he snapped, eyes wide. "She's too strong for that! She would never have allowed innocent people to be sacrificed for someone else's benefit!"

"If only," said Joushi wistfully. "If she'd been breakable, I would have let the clients have a chance with her. She would have been a perfect addition." The glint in his eyes let them know he knew what he was doing. He wanted to get a rise out of them. Kakashi clenched his fist, nearly biting through his lip behind his mask. "Men would have paid handsomely to merely touch her. A fortune for the opportunity to dominate her. Such exotic looks—pink hair, green eyes, fit figure. After the first time I got to touch those soft breasts, I knew what I wanted to do with her. Though mine involved less of her body and more of teaching her what she could do with that errant mouth of hers."

He was across the room in seconds. Kakashi's fist met the side of Joushi's face with a hollow thud.

The Copy-nin could feel the bone giving way beneath his knuckles and it gave him perverse pleasure to know that the man would probably never eat solid food again for the rest of his life, however little that time was. Joushi fell onto his side from the force, spitting blood and particles of teeth onto the hard, sandy floor. Kakashi towered over him, fists tense at his side as he breathed heavily, his anger not yet spent. The men around him were silent. No one had moved an inch to stop him, no one had opened their mouth to recall him. They merely stood and watched, almost wishing for more.

This was how ANBU was. Bloody and raw and unhinged. The simple contemplation and execution of which rule to break, and Kakashi was breaking all the rules. This was merely vocal interrogation. Physical contact, especially by an outside participant, was forbidden. For the physical interrogation, specialists would be brought in to supervise the most direct and easy way to remove the information that they wanted. But nobody was going to say anything about his "out of line" behavior—they were silently commending him and wishing they could have laid their hands on him. Kakashi breathed deeply in and out, aware very much of his fellow ninjas' eyes on his back. Rubbing his knuckles, he kicked at the ground, childlike enjoyment flooding him when some of it fell on Joushi's face, causing the man to close his eyes, shake his head, cough and sneeze.

"You're pathetic. Posturing will only get you more broken bones before we grind your body into _dust_. Continue talking in such manner if you wish, but really, it's your funeral." His voice was cold and superior, every part the detached warrior—even though his emotions were so heavily tied to the young girl's wellbeing. "My time is better spent waiting for Sakura to wake up." He turned around, meeting Genma's dark brown gaze and then Gaara's aquamarine before walking towards the exit.

Naruto made a motion to stop him, but Lee's hand reappeared on his shoulder. "Let him go. He needs time."

Genma nodded to his friend as the silver-haired man passed him on the way to the exit. "Don't worry." He nodded his head towards the man on the floor. "I'll make sure he gets what's coming to him."

Kakashi didn't respond, but left the room in silence.

It was a long walk through the winding corridors to his destination: Sakura's hospital room. As he approached the room, he watched as a nurse and Gaara's wife exited, speaking in dulcet tones. He paused outside, staring quietly down at his feet while the two women spoke. The young nurse glanced back and forth ostentatiously, before the dark-haired woman finally nodded her head and excused her. Eyes wide, the nurse backed away before turning around to walk away, clutching her small stack of files. She glanced over her shoulder more than once before disappearing down another hallway.

Natsume turned then to him and folded her arms in front of her, peering up at him with her large, olive eyes. "Did you need something, Hatake-san?" she asked politely. "Or are you merely going to take up space and stare at the floor?"

He threw her a small glare. "Is there any change?"

"No," answered Natsume, her expression passive, but respectfully curious. "There is no change. Yet."

"Will there ever be a change or are we being unusually optimistic? Will she ever get better? Will she ever wake up?"

The woman inclined her head to look him fully in the face. "Do you really want the answer to that question, Hatake-san?" she asked quietly, gauging his reaction. His lone gray eye snapped to her face, hands tightening to fists at his sides. She sighed and brushed her dark hair from her face. "At the moment, we cannot be sure. Sakura's tests say that her body _is_ recovering. We've set her broken bones, treated cuts and infections, gave her nearly two pints of blood, have her on fluids that will provide her body with all the nutrients it will need. The stress on her heart from whatever jutsu she used is great, but her heart is strong. She is still _healing_."

She walked closer to him and smiled. "Worry about her, pray for her, even _cry_ for her, but never give up. Sakura didn't spend five years of her life in that hell to die as soon as she left. _Never_ give up hope." Patting his arm comfortingly, she said, "There is evidence that coma patients are aware of what is going on around them. Go to her, talk to her as if she were awake. It will help both of you. She might just be able to hear you."

Her hand dropped from his arm and she followed the same path that the young nurse had taken earlier. Kakashi watched her for a few moments before sighing. He shoved his hand into his pocket and walked into the room.

Sakura looked small and weak in the large hospital bed. Large machines were positioned next to the head of her bed, and a few of them beeped in a strange, pulsating rhythm. Kakashi stood awkwardly beside her bed, shifting uncomfortably back and forth on his feet. She was still the only person that could get him in a hospital for long periods of time. He took the hand closest to him, smoothing his thumb over the tape that held her IV down. Examining her still form carefully, he searched her face for anything out that seemed out of place.

Her expression was peaceful, as though she were merely sleeping and not unconscious. Her hair was longer now than he had ever seen it—longer even than when she had first become his student. Someone had pulled it all over to one side and braided it to keep it out of the way. She would have looked almost normal, if not for her injuries. Finger-like bruises spanned around her neck, her left eye was black, and an angry scab had formed beneath her lower lip. His stomach churned as he took in the small myriad of cuts and bruises that peppered her arms.

_She might just be able to hear you._

"I've missed you, Sakura."

* * *

Tsunade nodded, eyes scanning over the report with glee. "Kakashi says that he, Naruto and Genma will stay in Suna however long they need for Sakura to recover. But once the bandits are properly taken care of, Kiba, Genma, and Lee will return to Konoha." The arrogant tone to her voice wasn't something the medic had heard in a long while. The woman was practically _glowing_.

Still, Shizune shifted nervously back and forth on her feet. "How long will it take for her to get well again, though, Tsunade-sama?" she asked worriedly.

"However long she needs," answered the Hokage importantly. "Her health is the highest factor here. I will _personally_ put Kakashi and Naruto on leave with pay if I need to keep them there. I won't have her travelling in any sort of condition."

A knock at the door caused them both to turn. The young jounin runner, Enkai peeked around the door discretely. "Uchiha Sasuke is here to see you, Hokage-sama," he stuttered quietly, "as you requested."

Tsunade breathed in deeply, her shoulders raising as she tilted her neck to the side to crack. "Arigatou, Enkai. You may return to your post." The jounin bowed before shutting the door. The woman turned to Shizune with an irritated air. "I don't feel like dealing with that brat right now, but I know it has to be done." She flashed a grin. "But I can make him sweat for a bit. Tell him I need a few more minutes."

"Sure, Tsunade-sama." Shizune walked out of the room.

The dark-haired man stood out like a sore thumb in the middle of the Hokage Tower, and she fixed him with her dark gaze rather rudely. "She'll be with you in a short while, she's slightly busy. You can have a seat while you wait," she offered, pointing to the chairs against the wall, though she knew he wouldn't take them. Without waiting to see if he answered, she walked away—though her eyes stayed on him the entire time.

Sasuke shifted awkwardly from one foot to the other, feeling his skin prickle under such intent scrutiny.

The dark-haired medic sat behind her desk outside the Hokage's office, head bent over a large, dusty tome. Her eyes, partially obscured by a fringe of black hair, however, were not focused on the book; but instead were narrowed suspiciously on the young man in question. Her frown was evident, though her lips were set in such a thin line that her mouth appeared almost invisible.

He was used to the looks, but that didn't mean it was any easier to accept them. Almost everyone that had been close friends with Sakura treated him the same way: as though it was his fault she was gone. That he'd shamed her mere memory with his marriage to Ino.

He wanted a family, children and a wife that could give him one. He wanted to restart his Clan and make it better than ever. The blonde had already given him one son. . .

Sakura had been declared _dead_.

As similar as they were, Sasuke refused to become his once-teacher. He would not, could not, remain in perpetual mourning for the woman he'd loved. No tears or prayers, nor even celibacy, would bring the pink-haired woman he'd once been willing to give his life for back to life. Or even back to him.

Just when he was sure he couldn't take any more of Shizune's glares, and he could feel a volatile need to snap at her, the Hokage's door opened. He started at the sound, a soft click and swish of wood passing through the air. Sasuke's dark eyes swept towards the blonde woman that stood before him, and he gave a short bow of respect out of instinct, though confusion washed over him.

The older woman's face was a hard combination of emotions. There was anger there—her mouth was fashioned analogous to Shizune's—but there was a keen glittering in her eyes that he could place. From previous experience, it normally meant something bad.

"Well, c'mon, don't just stand there all day."

Sasuke started at her voice, snapped into a somewhat formal bow before he followed her inside. The windows along the eastern side of the room were shut against a fiercely blowing wind, causing an unusual backdrop with the sunset that filtered through the western windows. Cautiously, the Uchiha raised his eyes as the older woman sat down and began to lazily organize the papers that were spread on her desk into a pile. After a few silent, awkward minutes, Sasuke coughed.

Tsunade glanced up boredly. "How far along is Ino?"

The young man glanced skeptically at her, dark eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "She's due in two months." He wouldn't voice the other remarks that wanted to follow. Ones about how the blonde woman was such a great medic but couldn't even keep a patient's due date in her memory. Then his mouth opened into a slight "oh" as some realization dawned on him. "I'd requested not to have any sort of important or dangerous mission with Ino so close to her delivery. I'd rather not have to argue that."

Tsunade waved her hand, an amused smile tugging at the corner of her lips. "No, nothing like that Sasuke," she assured, smiling at him in such a way he wasn't sure was good or not. It reminded him ever so slightly of a cat, caught after eating its master's pet canary. "I'll have to see her soon, though. I believe she's due for a checkup. No, I called you here, because I wanted you to hear this from me, and not from any other—possibly less reliable—source. I'm sure you remember that your two former teammates embarked on a mission some five days ago. You yourself were invited to join them but you decided not to attend." She lifted a piece of paper up in front of her, though her eyes watched him over the top. "We've recently received word that their mission was successful."

"What?" the normally eloquent Uchiha stuttered, a flare of fear blossoming in his gut. He tried to think it over logically in his head.

Naruto and Kakashi. . . They'd just gone on a mission about a lead on a missing-nin. A lead about Sakura. Though her name had been added to the cenotaph, her file had been marked unsolved and her status MOA until further evidence could be given, proving her loyal death, treason or something else to that affect. They had gone off on some harebrained mission based on the rumor mill of Suna—nothing concrete.

There was _no_ way.

"Sakura's alive."

For a minute, he could think of nothing to say. What were you supposed to say when someone laid that big of a bombshell on your head? _Thank you for telling me that the previous love of my life, who was thought to be dead, is in fact, alive. Thank you also for finding this information out after I married and had children with her best friend._ His mouth felt dry, like someone had shoved a wad of toilet paper into the back of his throat. He swallowed, but the action only caused the sensation to intensify. "You're certain?"

Tsunade nodded. "Positive. They have her in the ICU at Suna's general hospital. She's in critical condition, but they've managed to stabilize her." The older woman's eyes grew very serious as she rested her chin against her knuckles. "Your marriage to Ino is valid. You've consummated through more than sex—but through the birth of a child and the conception of a second. If you should choose to leave her, be aware of what type of future that would give her and her children. Even if you divorced, you would still be required by law to help support your children until their sixteenth birthday."

Face solemn, Sasuke shook his head infinitesimally, and murmured, "I have no intention of divorcing Ino."

"And Ino would murder you in your sleep should you be caught cheating." Tsunade's smile was grim.

He nodded. "I know my place. My life is with Ino now."

The Hokage nodded. "See that you stay true to your words. I wouldn't' want to have to step in to fix anything. You may go now."

Sasuke stared at the floor blankly as he bowed, moving out of the room stiffly and slow. Tsunade watched his retreating figure with interested, narrowed eyes. Only when she was certain that the man was gone did she sigh, and return to her papers. "Stop _clucking_, Shizune," she growled, not looking up from her shifting paperwork. "If you have something to say to me, I expect you to say it to my face and not behind my back."

The dark-haired woman slipped into the room quietly.

"Close the door behind you." The blonde's eyes glanced up momentarily before returning to her desk.

She didn't really close the door as much as she slammed it. "I can't believe that was all you said to him. "Stay true to your words"." Shizune crossed her arms, huffing loudly as she leaned her hip against the older woman's desk. "Do you know how hard coming home is going to be on Sakura? There are so many changes that have occurred since her kidnap. I wouldn't be surprised if she wished she _had_ died."

Tsunade narrowed her eyes. "Of course I know how hard it's going to be. Her parents have died, her fiancee is married to her best friend. People have died, gotten married, had children. She'll even just have to readjust to being around people. That's why we're here—we're here to help her. And she'll have Kakashi, of course." Her nails scratchd lightly against the wooden desk as she smiled slightly, thinking of the experienced jounin's soft spot for his previous student.

"We are here to help give her a reason for living. Help through the depression and the sadness, and whatever other discontented feelings she should express. She's too much a wonderful person to be taken in such a way."

"Not that I disagree with you on any of those points, but did you ever stop to think that Sakura may decide to start her life elsewhere?" questioned Shizune in a quiet voice. "She is such a gifted medic-nin, she'd be accepted anywhere she went. If she asked your permission to defect from Konoha. . . Could you let her?"

"It won't come to that."

Shizune pressed, "There may be too many memories! Too many things she doesn't want to remember."

"Are you quite finished, Shizune?" snapped Tsunade, opening a drawer to take out an ink well and pen.

The dark-haired woman sighed. "I'm just scared that things are going to be different."

Tsunade shook her head. "Change is needed, sometimes."

* * *

She sputtered.

Ice-cold water trickled down her face, her neck, her back. She blinked against the burn it created when drops rolled into her eyes. It was freezing, and she felt even colder because of the strong, incessant wind that blew against her. Sakura shook her head as much as she dared, trying to find her way to her feet.

Through the blurry haze, she peered around, and saw only four gray, stone-like walls surrounding her. The room was dark, with a single light fixture that hung, stationary, over her head; buzzing loud enough to bother her. Longer than your standard 12x12 ANBU interrogation room, the light faded so that she couldn't see into the corners properly, and besides a table (with small, multi-colored blurry things on it) and the bucket (that she suspected had held the water she was now covered in), the room was uncharacteristically empty.

It couldn't be, however. Somebody had to be there to dump the water on her.

She tried to remember anything, anything at all, that she could about how she'd gotten to this place. Her memory stretched back far enough to the battle, the looks on her teammate's faces as she'd been scooped up. She remembered struggling, but beyond that, everything was black.

Her head felt as though it had swollen to three times its natural size and ached as though she'd taken a sledgehammer to the temple. A strange, painfully uncomfortable pressure was building behind her eyes the more coherent she became. By the way her vision was limited, she was sure that her eyes had to have been swollen to at least twice their normal size, and everything was in such a haze, she could barely make out shapes. Her hands were tied behind her back and what looked like inch-wide shackles were clamped around all four limbs. Turning, she rolled onto her side and then flopped awkwardly onto her stomach. She used to her knees as a brace to raise herself up into a kneeling position, before trying to rise to her feet. Disoriented as she was, and with her hands tied behind her back, she wound up falling on her ass.

Sakura growled in frustration. Without thinking, she tried to focus, sending a wave of super-human chakra straight to her fists, then let out a strangled wail as she was knocked onto her back. She bit through her lip as her body shook silently.

A violent electrical shock surged through her, forcing the air from her lungs.

"Ah ah ah," a voice admonished from somewhere around her, as the small shudders through her calmed. "I wouldn't try that again if I were you. Them are chakra cuffs, little girl. Most people're good enough with'em only on the wrists. You seem t'be an 'ception, though. Good thin' we got extras. Yer lucky we don't get'em in collars, or else you'd be wearin' one of them too!"

"Where. . .? Where am I?" The pain was just now beginning to fade. Even in her disorientation, she could manage to tell that the voice came from someone who was standing up straight and somewhere to her left. With some difficultly, she managed to struggle back onto her knees.

A hushed murmur.

Then a chuckle.

Footsteps brought a body closer to her, a shadow dividing from the darker around it.

"Eh, we dun specifically _need_ her. Doubt Joushi-sama'll mind 'er much. An' she's horribly pretty." A hand gripped her face. Jerking, she lunged in an attempt to snap down on the offending appendage. A closed fist collided with her stomach, actually knocking her off her feet. Her head slammed into the ground, sending waves of pain thrumming through her head. Her stomach rolled, bile rising in her gut. She turned her head and vomited on the floor. It left a burning residue in the back of her throat that she had the urge to cough away.

"Stop it." The sound of a large door opening was accompanied by a soft, but commanding feminine voice. It was also incredibly reproachful, with a slight hint of disgust. Light splashed the ground around Sakura's head, but the door slammed shut and it was gone again. "Touch her again and you'll lose your hand."

The man tensed, so much so that even Sakura could feel it. "Watch who yer mouthin' off to, whore," he spat, fiercely grabbing the woman by the wrist. "Don't forget, as much as the men crave yer body, I can still break it."

The woman laughed, a high ringing sound that reminded the kunoichi of bells. "Do you honestly believe that, Toki?" Twisting, she tore her arm out of his grip, nearly growling as she continued. "Even if you were man enough to break me, Mujihi would roast your head on a spit. After making sure it was twisted off your pathetic form. He'd feed you to the dogs."

Sakura felt her anger intensify, and she struggled futilely against her bonds. "What the fuck is going on?" She sounded breathless and frantic, voice permeate d with anxiety. Even in her fear, disappointment flooded through her. She felt weak, absolutely vulnerable. Without her strength, she was nothing more than a medic. Without access to her chakra, she was a frightened ninja. Without her sight, she was merely helpless.

Toki chuckled darkly, "Welcome to hell!"

"Idiot man. Leave us." A delicate hand settled on Sakura's head. Despite the immediate revulsion that rose within her, something told her that if she were to get any answers, any at all, she was going to have to rely on this faceless woman.

"I'm supposed to vet potential girls, ain't I, Kokiko?" answered Toki proudly. Sakura could almost imagine the arrogant smirk drawn across his face. "If she's to be of use here, then I should vet 'er, shouldn't I?"

Scoffing, Kokiko replied, "She was brought here to be a healer, Toki, not a prostitute."

Sakura's breathing nearly stopped. They know I can heal?

"What?" Toki laughed again, but his voice sounded further back than before. "We gonna dress 'er in a nurse's outfit and have 'er serve at bedside?"

"They took her for a specific reason," murmured Kokiko. "They saw her. She can manipulate chakra, manifest it so that she can draw it into her palms and transfer it into the body of another."

"That's impossible."

Quietly, the woman lowered herself to the ground, her hand skimming over Sakura's head. "It really is not. You just have never seen it done. Most ninja villages have begun to incorporate it into their healing. It's slow, but the process of chakra healing is growing in popularity. Some villages—like Sunagakure and Konohagakure—have even allowed their medic-nins to treat the general populace." With a gentleness that the young woman was unaware the lady possessed, Kokiko smoothed her pink hair from her face. The woman took her by the chin, forcing her to look up. "You are a very special young girl," she murmured, though not out of any kindness for Sakura, she could tell—a cold glint had entered her gaze.

With a swiftness she couldn't follow in her damaged state, the hand at her chin was at her neck. The fingers gripped and enclosed, swiftly cutting off the airflow. The woman lifted slowly to her feet, carrying Sakura—clawing at her outstretched arm—up with her. "Better learn to rub some dirt in those pretty feathers of yours and learn to be a sparrow."

* * *

Sakura woke up gasping.

It had been ages since she'd last had a nightmare. Normally, her dreams consisted of memories—reminders of the life that she'd left back Konoha. This nightmare was indeed a memory, but it was an unwelcome one. She did not wish to be reminded of her life in _this_ place. All the more reason she seriously needed to get out. . .

"You've finally woken up." The voice that spoke was soft and gentle, a woman's voice—she didn't recognize it. "I'll page a nurse."

Sakura stiffened, turning sharply.

Something at her side tore with a wet, squishing sound and she cried out.

"Now, stop that. You'll tear all your stitches if you keep trying to move like that," the voice clucked; and Sakura peered through the darkness, attempting to locate its source. A pair of dark olive-green eyes shone in the shadows, rich with a kindness she hadn't seen since she'd watched the light fade from Ami's eyes. "Calm down. Nobody's going to hurt you. I'll get a nurse in here to mend your sutures; they'll need to take your vitals anyway, now that you've woken. Do you need anything? A glass of water, some painkillers, maybe you're hungry? If you nod or shake your head, that'll work."

"Who are you?" Sakura's voiced grated with lack of use. Her throat felt on fire.

It was hard to see in the dark, but Sakura was a kunoichi after all—with a little focus, she was able to discern where the woman was standing. "I wouldn't talk," the woman warned gently, walking closer. Sakura followed her progress with a narrowed, suspicious gaze. "They only recently took the tube out of your throat. You had a bad reaction to the first set of antibiotics we gave you. You went into shock."

"They intubated me?" she asked, narrowing her eyes as she tried to see in the dark. "Are you a medic?"

"Oh no!" She wasn't sure, but she could almost make out of the crinkle of young laugh lines around the edges of the olive gaze. The eyes were attached to a slender, if slightly rounded figure. With the shape of her shadowy figure and the youth to her voice, she could easily establish that they were at least within the same general age bracket. And if she stood up, Sakura was sure that they would nearly be the same height, give or take an inch or two either way. "I'm just a volunteer around the hospital. I check in on patients for nurses to look for the more obvious signs of a need for assistance. We've been waiting for you to come out of your coma."

_Coma?_ Sakura flinched at the thought. _Guess it's better than dying_. She'd known that the repercussions of the jutsu she had performed were great, but at the time, she hadn't planned on living past the following few hours.

"I'm glad you're awake now," the woman said, walking slightly away from her, and Sakura tensed as she watched the shadow of the woman move, but she returned—surprising Sakura with her sudden close proximity—with a paper cup, filled to the brim. She held it out for Sakura to take—the kunoichi narrowed her eyes, but reached out a shaking hand to take the cup. "There's so much for you to catch up on." Close enough now, a pale hand flipped a switch on the wall, gently lighting the room with a dim, subtle glow. It was a sudden invasion to Sakura's eyes, though the pain faded after a few moments.

It made her suspicious. The woman had somehow been able to wheedle closer without her noticing. She hadn't thought that she'd grown so unpracticed… "You never answered my question," murmured Sakura, her eyes narrowing. "Who are you?"

Almost as though she could feel Sakura's hesitation, immediately after Sakura had a firm grasp on the cup, she took a step back. Sakura's breath came easier once there was more space between them. She glanced down at the cup, cradling it between the fingers of both hands.

It had been five years since she had seen clear drinking water.

It was almost too precious to drink. The way the soft light glimmered against the white of the cup, allowing her to see clear to the bottom. She hadn't been able to look straight through whatever she drank in so long. After a few seconds of staring at the water, she tentatively lifted it to her lips to take a sip, wondering if it would taste as wonderful as it looked. Without embarrassment, she groaned and drank furiously. The cup was empty in seconds. The cool liquid slid easily down her throat, quenching the burn that lingered in the back of her throat. She could feel it as it moved down her esophagus into her stomach, a cool fire that made her shiver.

The woman smiled, but didn't move any close to take the cup from her. "See? Bet that hit the spot."

Now, in the dim light, the kunoichi was able to get a decent look at the woman's face; she was completely unfamiliar. Her skin was a dusky hue, not exactly pale, but not tanned either. The light, informal kimono she wore was loose-fitting, but fitted enough for her to appear slender. The softness of her hands and the roundness to her hips betrayed the fact that she wasn't a ninja, but how she was able to approach without her noticing made Sakura uncomfortable. Sakura refused to allow the woman's patient eyes and kind smile lure her into a false sense of security.

If there was one thing Sakura prided herself on, it was knowing her charges. The face of every girl, every scar and bruise, had been burned into her mind. But for some reason, this young woman's did not register in the banks of her memory. That could mean either of two things: one, this woman had either been hidden from her or she was a recent addition. Or two, Joshi had sent out more men to steal women. She suspected the latter and wondered how fast her body would heal—she would make sure that this she killed him the moment she had the chance.

The woman gave her a secretive smile. "I believe you know my husband," she remarked quietly, as she took the blood pressure cuff off the wall beside the bed. Sakura allowed the woman to wrap it around her bicep without protest. "In fact, I believe I owe you thanks. Without you, he might have died."

Sakura tilted her head to the side, brow furrowing. "Who is your husband?"

"My name is Natsume, but you can call me Nami—everyone does." Natsume wandered to the end of the bed, seizing the chart hanging from the post. She marked a few notes before replacing it. "I'll go get you something to eat. I'm sure you're hungry." Sakura knew this woman, this Nami, could tell how frustrated she was. The mysterious smile curling the corner of her mouth was enough to make the young kunoichi's stomach churn with worry. But Natsume turned back, her eyes softer. "Your boys really love you, you know."

That shook her.

"My boys?" she whispered, her voice cracking. She leaned forward in the bed as far as the wires and tubes attached to her would allow. "Please," she begged, "please tell me what you mean! "My boys"? Where am I?"

Natsume paused. "You're in Sunagakure, dear," she said gently. "You're safe."

"Don't play with me." Tears welled in her eyes involuntarily, spilling in twin trails down her cheeks. She bit her lip, feeling more vulnerable than she could even remember. "This is some trick. Y-you, you're trying to trick me again. Into thinking I'm saved—I was supposed to die!" She was yelling now, hands angrily fisting the blanket at her sides for support. "I wasn't supposed to live, Shishou said! You can't keep here—I'll die before I let you!"

Natsume shot forward, hands pressing urgently, yet comfortingly, against her shoulders. Her face was scrunched with worry. "Sakura-san, you must calm down! Think of your injuries, you're going to hurt yourself," she exclaimed, eyes shifting worriedly between Sakura's face and the steadily beeping monitors around the head of the bed. "I promise you, I am not lying."

Sakura clenched her eyes shut. "I won't be your pet anymore!"

Seizing the younger woman's chin firmly between her fingers, Natsume forced Sakura to turn her head, to meet her eyes when the latter opened hers to glare. The dark-haired woman was shook by the hostility that burned within Sakura's eyes, but held her ground, her olive gaze equally as intense. "Haruno Sakura, you are in _Suna_," she said determinedly, the sternness in her voice a strange contrast to her kindhearted appearance. "_You are safe_. The caves have been destroyed, ANBU has taken Mujihi into custody, and those poor women are being treated and will be sent home, where they belong. Mujihi will die as soon as they get whatever information they can out of him. And you. . . You, Sakura-san, will heal and will go home. Hoe to Konoha with Naruto-kun and Lee-san and Hatake-san."

Tears leaked profusely down her face. "Naruto? Lee?" Her voice sounded weak, childlike. She gaped with open astonishment at the very idea. Chin still clutched in Natsume's grip, she found it hard to focus on anything in particular.

Natsume nodded. "They're here. They came for you. They're waiting for you to get well again, so you can go home."

Sakura shuddered. "It wasn't a dream. . . I really saw Kakashi?"

"No, it wasn't a dream, you really saw him." The woman shook her head, lifting a hand to maternally smooth a few stray strands of hair out of her face. "They rescued you. And now they're all very worried about you."

The strength fled from Sakura's body and she sagged on the bed, her head lolling backwards on the soft pillow. She felt warm and fuzzy all over. Her nightmare was over. She had lived through it and might even get to see her boys again. If her heart could only hold out a little longer. . . She knew that she had a fifty-fifty shot at survival now that she'd woken up from the coma. Whether or not she was strong enough to sustain her life would be the true test of her abilities. Though, through the hazy fog that clouded her conscious, she was acutely aware of how proud Tsunade would be—_after_ a thorough scolding—that she had executed such a difficult and technical jutsu. She was a bit proud of it herself. She hadn't ever accounted for being strong enough to survive the jutsu, she had only thought herself strong enough to maintain it long enough to destroy Gomimaru.

"You've been a very sick young lady. Whatever jutsu you used put serious strain on your heart. Why don't you try to sleep some more while I get a nurse up here to check you over and make sure you're okay?" Natsume hovered in the periphery of her vision, a swirl of creamy skin and long dark hair.

Sakura blinked rapidly in an attempt to focus, but the other woman only swam in blurs in her vision. "Did you inject a sedative into my IV?" She had to, Sakura thought as she listened to herself speak. Her words were slurring together, and the telltale fuzzy numbness and warmth were beginning to spread from her fingertips and toes up her arms and legs. "Without me noticing?" Even slurring, she could still sound threatening. She was less angry at being dosed and angrier that she hadn't even seen the woman act. _I really am rusty_.

Natsume smiled. "Just something to help you sleep," she acquiesced quietly, with a kind look on her pretty face. "Now that you're awake, we'll have to start weaning you off the morphine. Your body will still be in quite of a bit of pain. This will at least help you to sleep."

The drug, whatever it was, had a very calm, peaceful affect. She didn't _feel_ drugged—merely sleepy. It wasn't a trapped kind of feeling, the kind where she knew she couldn't fight its affects even if she wanted to. When—not if—she fell asleep, she'd gladly fall asleep, and not resist the drug's urges. Weakly, Sakura tugged at the blanket where it had bunched around her waist and pulled it up to her chin. With a pleasant smile, she rubbed her cheek against the material and nearly purred at its softness. _No more sleeping on a lumpy mattress with a shitty blanket_, Sakura thought as she rolled carefully onto her side, mindful of the IV. _No more being cold in the middle of the night or having Gomi beat me up._ "Okay. But one day, you gotta tell me who your husband in."

"Of course," the woman chuckled, turning away and walking towards the hall. "As soon as you wake up again. I'll tell you then."

Sakura's green eyes peered sleepily at her over the hospital comforter, still too alert for someone who had just be sedated. "I woke up cause of a nightmare, of the day I was taken." Her voice was soft, barely reaching Natsume.

The dark-haired woman blinked apologetically at her, whispering, "I'm so sorry that happened to you."

"But, before that," Sakura continued, "I had another dream." Her eyes fluttered, and her voice grew even softer, almost o the brink of sleep. "I thought I heard Kakashi's voice. I dreamt of them often, so that's not strange, but it was never that clear before. Isn't that strange?"

Natsume tried to keep the smile from her face by biting her lip lightly. "No, I don't think it's strange at all, Sakura-san. I think it sounds just right." She knew she was only talking to herself—Sakura had fallen asleep the second after she'd finished her sentence—but it made her feel good that Kakashi really had made an effect on the young girl before her.

Sakura not recognizing her was slightly revealing, though Natsume figured it hardly mattered if the girl had only some or partial memory loss. The important names she had remembered—Lee, Naruto, Kakashi; those were the only ones that really mattered. Any brain damage could only be minor. Walking briskly, Natsume neared the nurses' desk and set Sakura's chart down on the countertop.

A tanned, red-haired nurse looked up at the small clatter, adjusting her glasses on the bridge of her nose. "Did you need something, Natsume-san?"

The dark-haired woman smiled. "Haruno Sakura in ICU room 4a woke up from her coma only a few moments ago, Aiko-san."

Aiko started, her pale eyes going wide. "You're sure?"

"I was in the room with her," Natsume assured, smiling with the corner of her mouth. She brushed a stray strand of dark hair out of her eyes and tucked it behind her ear before crossing her arms. "I gave her a sedative for sleep, but she was up and cognizant. She carried on perfect conversation. She didn't exactly remember me, but as soon as I mentioned the names of her fellow Konoha ninja, she instantly remembered them. This is _excellent_. This is just what Jun-san was talking about. If she can be that aware of her surroundings this early. . . she should have over a fifty percent chance of a full recovery."

"Full recovery," echoed Aiko, her eyes wide and bewildered. "It's most definitely excellent, she should be _dead_! I mean, we all were rooting for her, but it seemed like such a long shot. . . Even the Kazekage seemed somewhat doubtful that she'd ever wake up. For it to happen just like that; it's nothing short of a miracle, I'd say."

"I believe that you'll need to send somebody down to check her vitals."

Aiko nodded. "Yes, of course. But, if I might ask, where are you going?"

Natsume smirked. "I am going to go inform our guests that their special lady woke up."

* * *

Go ahead. Yell at me. You know you want to. It's been almost a year—at least I finally got this up.

Some of you were very, very supportive of my hard schedule. What with senior year, friend and boy trouble, a new job and then just dealing with having a social life, my world has been pretty crazy and stressful. This chapter was needed, but there isn't much action going on in it. I think that was what made it so difficult for me to write. But, like I said, it was needed to get to the next chapter… which may end up being like fifteen pages long.

I originally had three more scenes planned for this chapter, but I vowed to myself never to go over ten pages, and I'm almost there—so I decided to add those onto the next chapter, seeing as I know what I want for them. That way writing should come a bit easier. I'm trying to get back into the swing of things.

I wanted to post this right away, so Nami (the real one) hasn't had a chance to look at the final draft yet. (So no yelling at me for grammar mistakes! you're welcometo point them out so that I can fix them thoughh.) But she's been there, helping me along with all her words of encouragement to at least get this chapter out before I gave up. Because she knew how much this story meant to me—and she was right. I don't want to give up now.

Nice to see you guys again!  
- Hiko mokushi


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